Day by Day

We will know the exact count today but as of yesterday the embryologist felt good about 4 embryos who made it to Day 5 for biopsy and freeze. I am happy with this number. Did I secretly wish 8 would survive to Day 5 for biopsy and freeze, so another round wouldnt be required? Of course. 

In the beginning, we discussed Day 3 vs Day 5 testing and in the end went with Day 5 testing for several reasons. There is a lot of conversation regarding Day 5 being the best, but really you do what you can do. There are clinics who do not do Day 5 testing leaving those with no other option but Day 3. There are also oodles and oodles baby born from Day 3 testing. A possible con of Day 5 testing is a fresh transfer is almost never possible and freezing and sometimes growing the embryo to Day 5 adds to the expenses. 

We chose Day 5 for several reasons. The first being an embryo's ability to reach blastocyst stage can be used as a criteria for embryo selection. This means only the strongest embryos make it to this point. The second reason we chose Day 5 is because the biopsy will not be taken from the embryo itself but rather the trophectoderm and a Day 5 embryo (more than 100 cells) is much more resilient than a Day 3 (average of 8 cells) embryo. Day 5 biopsy is also a tad bit more statistically accurate as you are taking more genetic material. A biopsy at Day 5 consists of an average of 10-15 cells as compared to a Day 3 biopsy which consists of 1 cell.


We have frequently been asked if the 4 embryos could be tested now. Of course they can for another PGS fee which is in the thousands.

We have decided the most odds in our favor way to continue is batching this cycle by biopsying and freezing these embryos. I will then have another retrieval July/August. We will have the additional cost of another round/medication, but feel more comfortable testing at least 8 embryos. The PGS plan we have through RGI includes 8 embryos with each additional embryo costing $250. Luckily for us our embryologist is not charging us an additional biopsy fee, but we do have to pay for freezing and storage. Our embryologist is also kind enough to store the biopsy samples because RGI wanted to charge an addtional $500 for storage. At this point, we have had enough of additional charges.

I am hoping June flies by as quick as May and we can get another cycle started!