Eggs Belong in the Freezer Now
Egg freezing is no longer a niche move. It’s one of the fastest-growing fertility treatments in the UK, and the numbers back it up. According to the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HEFA), cycles have jumped from 2,567 in 2019 to 6,932 in 2023. That’s not a blip, that’s a shift. So what’s driving it?At its core, egg freezing is about buying time. The process itself is fairly full-on: around two weeks of hormone injections to stimulate egg production, followed by retrieval under sedation. The eggs are then frozen and can be stored for up to 55 years, ready to be used whenever the timing feels right. But it’s not a silver bullet. Success isn’t guaranteed, and outcomes depend on factors like age, with the best results seen in women who freeze their eggs before 35 (according to London Women’s Clinic). It’s also not cheap. A single cycle can cost anywhere from £3,200 to £6,500, rising to £7,000 once medication and storage are factored in. Thawing and transferring? That’s another £2,500. So why are more women investing in it?The pandemic has definitely played its part. The restrictions on socialising made it harder for people to meet, prompting some women to turn to egg freezing as a way to alleviate the time pressures that can come with wanting to start a family. But Covid lockdowns aren’t the only reasons why the dating landscape has become so hellish. The apps have left many singles feeling burned out by dating, with the struggle to find a partner being a key driver behind more women freezing their eggs. There are thousands going a step further and taking the leap into parenthood alone, with the number of single women undergoing fertility treatment more than trebling in a decade. Careers also remain an important factor for women looking to preserve their fertility, both in terms of reaching personal goals and covering the increased costs of having a baby. Getting promoted at work was one of Libby Andrews’ main priorities (along with travelling and doing “whatever the hell I wanted”) in her early thirties, so she froze her eggs at age 33 for when those priorities would change. That time came when she approached 40, and now being in a financially stable position to start a family alone – “I don’t believe that life just automatically hands you a loving, respectful partner exactly within the window of your biological clock. Sometimes it will happen later in life, or earlier, sometimes it doesn’t work out at all” – she’s now pregnant after completing a frozen embryo transfer. It’s most common in the US, where workers are more reliant on their employers for healthcare coverage, but a number of companies are now offering fertility benefits as part of their packages.This practice has had a mixed reception. Dr Lauren Kuykendall, an associate professor of industrial-organisational psychology at George Mason University in Virginia, argues that egg freezing could be seen an “enclosing” benefit (something that encourages more time at work) rather than an “enabling” benefit (something that allows employees to spend time away from work, like parental leave). However, the cost of fertility treatments means that policies like these go a long way in helping employees on their paths to parenthood. These benefits can also make it easier on staff who are taking absences from work for fertility treatments, which can cause disruption in everyday life. As Beth Hale, employment partner at law firm CM Murrary, says, IVF doesn’t have any specific protections under the Equalities Act as protection against pregnancy discrimination only begins from when a foetus is implanted.For Libby, the process was expensive and hard on her body. “You’ll go to the clinic every other day, you’ll be on a strict injection and medication schedule, and you’ll feel bloating and emotional and exhausted,” she explains for anyone considering it. “But at the end of the month hopefully you’ll have some eggs in the freezer you can use later in life when you’re ready to start a family. It’s just a moment in time compared to forever.”Though egg freezing is on the rise, relatively few women are actually coming back to use their eggs. One study from the Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel found that only around a quarter of women returned for fertility treatment, and of those, less than half used their frozen eggs. In the US, research from UCLA reported even lower numbers, with fewer than 6% returning within a five to seven year follow-up period.That said, timing may be skewing the data. Egg freezing is often a long game, and many women simply may not be ready yet. As Lindsay Kroener, professor of reproductive endocrinology and infertility at UCLA and senior author of the study, notes, longer follow-up periods will be key to understanding true return rates. Over time, more patients may come back to use the eggs they’ve stored.It’s also worth noting that egg freezing isn’t the only route. With options like IVF and intrauterine insemination, some women may be finding success elsewhere. And with developments on the horizon, including lab-grown sperm being explored by US biotech start-up Paterna Biosciences, the fertility landscape is continuing to shift.What’s clear is this isn’t just about biology, it’s about autonomy. Women are looking for ways to take control of timelines that haven’t always worked in their favour. Egg freezing doesn’t guarantee an outcome, but it does offer something many feel they didn’t have before: choice.We’re shining a light on the issues women continue to face as part of our Year of the Woman campaign. The World Economic Forum has said it could take 123 years to reach global gender parity, meaning several generations may pass without seeing true equality in their lifetimes. We firmly believe that, particularly in the current climate, a level playing field will only be achieved if these issues continue to be highlighted and challenged. Find more Year of the Woman content here.
