Help me to decide should I start IVF in UK or HK?

I am 37 and my husband is 46. He suffered from low sperm count and poor sperm mobility after doing snip reversal. I know we will need IVF + ICSI. My condition is fine after blood tests and tube scan. Conclusion from doctor is the male factor. However, I never have a normal cycle, my period can be 32 to 40 days. it is very hard to monitor the my optimal day. I never had a pill in my life, is that the reason i have a unstable period? Would that make IVF harder? or lower chances?


I moved to UK from Hong Kong last year and we have been seeing doctors here. We will have our IVF consultation this November (private clinic because my husband has a daughter with his ex so we are not entitled to NHS IVF treatment that is free). I am having a choice doing in UK or I can choose to come back to Hong Kong to do it. Is there anyone here have had the same experience? I know it is hard to say which country is better but I know if I do it HK, my husband may only can stay with me 3 weeks because of work. Lot of emotional issues i have to face to myself but advantage thing is, i have my parents there and I can speak the local language there.


Please help, I really need to decide soon!!!! Thank you so much !!!!!!!

Hi


We have almost same circumstance as you. We have tried twice so far but not successful yet (although we were very confident 2nd time and at least came out of it with 2 frozen day 5-6 embryos for another try). Based on our experience - we would advise to act quickly as possible. For us the interview time, etc. was painfully long. You need to push them. The other thing is to get a clinic you are confident in. If they are good - they can adjust the program to you body, cycle etc. Thats our opinion anyway


Good Luck

LL

Hi kitcat123, I have never been on the pill (except with long protocol IVF) but I have very stable periods- 24days exact. Shifting cycle does not lower your chances of IVF or make it harder because thats what the IVF drugs are for- to control your cycle. We also have male factor issue similar to yours.


Would this be your 1st IVF? I believe the Dr's are very good, competent and thorough here in HK. Since you do have a choice between either countries- I would do it where you have more support/ things to do during the wait; both before and after the egg retrieval and embryo transfer.

got repeated twice!

Hi LL and 788, thank you so much your replies. I feel so good to have someone out there hear me. I am not alone!!!


Yes it is my 1st IVF. I am so scared, particularly after hearing all the needles, surgery etc. To be honest, i am not a very brave girl, I would scream if a book drop on my feet and cry with a tiny cut on my hand. Am I going to survive all these?


Thanks LL, when did you start yours? Did you do both in HK? My doctor said my hubby has poor sperm count and mobility, does that mean IUI not a option? I guess if the sperm don't move much, there is no point to do the IUI. Also, given my age and circumstances, I probably should not waste any more time and go ahead with the IVF. Yes,you are right, i should try my best to pull in the consultation. May be I can use the cancellation slot if anyone may cancel their appointments!! What about HK, do you know how long is the wait? Also, how soon they start your treatment? The reason I want to find out is I need to quit from my job here when the treatment get starts.


Thanks LL, I feel much better after you told me it does not matter with my crazy cycle! I had been worrying about that for a long time. I thought that could be the problem why I never got pregnant. Well so far I was told everything is fine on me but probably with my crazy cycle, my chance of getting pregnant dramatically decrease. LL, you have 24 day cycle your chances should be higher, does it help on IVF? Mine is so long, sometimes is 30 days but most of the time at least 35 days :( don't know why I was born like that.


It is so hard to choose which place and what doctor I should have on my IVF. English is not my mother language, I definitely would feel more comfortable with HK doctor and hospital but I won't have my hubby been with me the whole time. Which thing is more important? Also, how to choose one I think it is the best for me? In UK, we didn't actually look around because my NHS doctor has a private clinic. We were told he is the best around the area and it saves us time and cost on getting the test reports we have at NHS (because he can write to himself getting the reports). If I do it in HK, which one you recommend?


Thanks so much girls. really appreciate you all being here for me!!

If I were in your situation and had to choose between a doctor I feel comfortable with and having my husband with me throughout, I would definitely go for the Doctor. In the scheme of things it's not that long a time to be without your husband and from what you've said it sounds like you will have your parents with you for support. Because of all the medication and having to go through the whole egg collection business, the fate of our bodies is in the hands of the Doctors. We have to rely on them enormously and just put all our faith in their abilities so it's vital you feel comfortable with whichever doctor you choose.


Another issue, however, is how your husband feels about it. If you go through IVF when he can't be around much he may feel left out.


If you go with Dr Derek Lo for IVF I think the cost MAY be marginally cheaper than IVF in the UK. Also, he was trained in the UK and worked in London I believe.... so you get the best of both worlds. I hope to start IVF with him in September. We had one failed IUI cycle with Doctor Lo and he said that because of poor morphology our best bet was IVF.



As for IUI with sperm problems, I think it all depends on the extent of the problem. It is still sometimes recommended if the sperm count/motility/ morphology is slightly below the normal range.

Thank you so much Kikidee.Do you have Derek Lo contact info? What is the wait time like? I am not young anymore, I want to start as soon as possible :(