An emerging dilemma in fertility is now the issue of what to do with frozen embryos that are no longer needed by fertility patients. Currently, about half a million are frozen, and are likely to remain frozen without “satisfactory options” for patients to dispose of their embryos.
The largest study ever done on fertility patients and their embryos took place at nine fertility clinics. Of 1,020 respondents, only about 600 said they were likely to use their embryos, and of the entire 1,020, more than 50% said they were very unlikely to donate extra embryos to other couples. This finding highlights the political aspects of embryo preservation and exposes the idea that wanting to keep an embryo does not necessarily equate wanting that embryo to become a child.
The most popular alternative was donating the embryos for research, but with a current ban on federal funds for embryonic research, most fertility patients are unable to select this option. This inability for patients to find an appropriate way they wish to use their embryos (other than for children) has encouraged the permanent freezing of embryos, as well as less common alternatives like asking for their own embryos and dealing with them personally and privately.
As this problem begins to grow with more and more patients unsure of what to do with their embryos, it emphasizes the necessity of considering “what to do with leftover embryos” at the beginning of fertility treatments rather than trying to find an appropriate way to dispose of them after the treatment is complete.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-12-04-embryos-fertility_N.htm
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