We are committed to providing
reproductive choices by combining innovative technology, accountability and
quality personal care.
In the News - Main Page
Television
Dr. Jain recently appeared on the hit Television Series "The Doctors" to discuss Fertility Preservation Through the Freezing of Eggs as a viable method of prolonging the age at which women may have children.
Watch The Clip from "The Doctors"
KNBC TV Los Angeles
KNBC4 in Los Angeles featured a story on fertility in women over the age of 30, in which Dr. Jain points out a few important facts. Originally aired, February 1, 2010.
Watch the clip:
The Today Show
Dr. Jain and patient Priya Hanson appeared on The Today
Show on May 19, 2008.
Watch the clip:
Priya Kapoor Hanson is a Life Coach and the founder of PRK Coaching,
a company that offers support to both men and women as they navigate and
plan their lives. Priya’s areas of expertise include job/career change,
enhancement or modification; family dynamics; mind/body wellness; and
chronic illness. She also brings to her practice extensive knowledge and
sensitivity concerning women’s health, fertility and neurological
diseases.
On April 1st and 8th 2008, Dr. Jain made a special guest
appearance on Discovery Health's new series, Deliver Me.
Dr. Jain discussed and performed egg freezing treatment
on Dr. Allison Hill one of the stars of the series.
View a clip of the new series:
Dr. Allison Hill on Extra
Fox’s Morning Show with Mike and Juliet
On April 23rd 2008, Dr. Jain and 42-year old patient Katya Naman
appeared on Fox's The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet.
Watch a clip:
Articles
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Why I Froze My Eggs
Newsweek magazine recently ran a story on egg freezing. The story chronicled the experience of the author, Rachel Lehmann-Haupt, who underwent a cycle of egg freezing in New York. Like many professional women she chose to delay having children in order to pursue her career.
In the article, she comments on many important aspects of egg freezing including improvements in egg freezing technology, safety issues, and the fact that freezing eggs does not guarantee a baby. She also points out the very real profit motivation of some companies that offer egg freezing. It should be noted that less than 5% of all fertility specialists offering egg freezing can claim a scientific publication or even the birth of one baby from a frozen egg.
Being an informed consumer is critical. Women should seek advice from fertility specialists who have demonstrated expertise in the field of cryopreservation and who have a track record of scientific publications and births from frozen eggs. To learn which questions to ask your doctor, please visit click on the following link: Egg Freezing Overview - Questions To Ask
Singular Magazine Recently Published an article about Cryogenic Egg Freezing and fertility. In the Article Dr Jain discusses The technology, Scientific advancements, and what one can expect from taking part in the egg freezing process. Click the photos below to read the article in its entirety.
Eggs are more prone to genetic abnormalities as a woman ages. These abnormalities lead to increased incidences of infertility, miscarriage and birth defects especially in women over 38 years of age. Egg freezing is a method that suspends egg aging. Since the genetic status of an egg cannot be determined solely on appearance, methods to evaluate eggs using genetic probes have developed and recently tested.
The egg discards DNA at two different times during its development, ovulation and fertilization. The reason for this is to reduce the number of chromosomes to 23 in order to match the 23 chromosomes delivered by the sperm. The discarded DNA (in the form of excess chromosomes) is jettisoned outside of the egg as a small, round pocket called the polar body.
Removal of the polar body (biopsy) can provide useful information about the genetic status of the egg. For example, if 23 chromosomes are found in the polar body, the presumption is that a normal count of 23 chromosomes remains in the egg. In contrast, if a number other than 23 is found in the polar body, it implies that an abnormal count remains in the egg and suggests that the egg and ensuing embryo will be genetically abnormal.
Testing of the polar body using modern genetic techniques such as Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH) or Array-CGH, allows identification of abnormal eggs and can thus help determine the number of genetically normal eggs a woman has to freeze.
However, there are several important limitations to this technology. First, CGH and Array-CGH are still considered experimental, with very little clinical data available. Most clinical data is based on young egg donors and does not reflect the genetic status of eggs from women in their late 30's.
Second, embryos may be genetically abnormal due to mistakes contributed by the egg at the time of the first polar body formation or the second polar body formation; or mistakes contributed by the sperm at the time of fertilization. Therefore, assessing only the first polar body by no means guarantees that a normal embryo will derive. Third, and perhaps most concerning, is the lack of research regarding the effects of biopsying an egg prior to freezing.
We recently completed a small clinical trial wherein we performed polar body biopsy on eggs prior to freezing. We found a high degree of egg damage. The panel of microscopic pictures above demonstrate these changes: the first picture is a normal egg with an intact first polar body (Photo #1); the next picture is an egg after the polar body was removed (Photo #2); the next two pictures show a biopsied egg after freezing and thawing demonstrating egg contents (Photos #3 & #4) extruding through the biopsy slit. These changes were found on multiple eggs from different patients. These eggs had to be discarded. In addition, many other eggs demonstrated abnormal chromosome segregation after fertilization, and none of the patients achieved a pregnancy.
At the current time we do not recommend polar body biopsy of eggs prior to freezing until further studies on effectiveness and safety are available.
Oocyte Cryopreservation byJohn K. Jain, M.D., and Richard
J. Paulson, M.D. Fertility and Sterility, Vol. 86, Supplement 3,
October 2006 (PDF file)
Us Weekly magazine (click on images to enlarge and read):
cover
inside
Women & Cancer magazine article One Patient's Journey,
by Dr. Jain. (click on images to enlarge and read):
