Reproductive Tourism/"IVF Vacations"

First of all, anyone who's been through an IVF cycle knows the irony of pairing the terms 'IVF' and 'Vacation' together. Seriously? Hm. Yes, you're in another country, enjoying the sites, eating the food, absorbing the culture. But at the same time, you're shooting yourself up with hormones, getting cooter-cam exams every day, being poked, proded and bled to death (nearly!) by some foreign lab tech, and I haven't even got to the part where the huge needle + catheter passes through your vaginal wall in an attempt to suck your massive, engorged ovaries dry. Nice vacation - I can only imagine.


I definitely see the draw to Reproductive Tourism, though. Apparently it's gaining in popularity, mostly because it's so much cheaper than doing ART in Canada or the States. Why wouldn't you travel overseas for a portion of the cost to do it here, all in, flight, hotel and treatments? The clinics are clouted as just as good as the care you receive at home. And, you get a supposed vacation out of it, too.


Most clinics here in Canada and in the US are charging an average of 10-12k per regular* IVF cycle. As well, egg donation in Canada and the US is limited; so in this respect, a lot of future parents end up going overseas for more affordable options.


It's funny - my clinic's RE Blogger posted about Reproductive Tourism recently, and of course was more than a little hesitant to appreciate the benefits of it - more so warning of the potential health risks in seeking care in non-first-world countries. Now, of course I completely agree with her when she says that "[the risks endured by obtaining IVF treatments through Reproductive Tourism] would not be an issue – patients would not consider traveling abroad – if care was more affordable or completely covered here in Canada." 100% agree.


But we're dealing with desperate, determined women who just want their baby. Or at least the chance to have one. I know that the RE Blogger only has our best interests in mind; she's an awesome physician and surgeon (I know from personal experience). But at the same time, she's had her chance to use ART to have healthy children (no doubt one of the perks of being an RE, I'm sure, just as if I needed any sort of imaging procedure I'd get in tomorrow despite the 12 month waiting lists). And I don't begrudge her that, at all.


At the same time I can see why women opt for these 'vacations'. They're cheaper. Readily accessible. It's an opportunity to travel. An option which entails gaining at least something positive out of the whole invasive IVF treatment.


I know personally of someone who went on an IVF Vacation. Bum eggs. Needed a donor. And couldn't get what she needed here. And? Baby in arms. First shot in another country with someone else's eggs, after several failed attempts here with her own.


So ya. I've thought of it. My husband's read up on it. These clinics do PGD. And a lot of these clinics, along with the PGD, will tell you the sexes of the embryos so you can choose which ones you want transfered (not that I would do that). All for thousands less than here in Canada.


Want to go to Cape Town, South Africa for a little vacation? How 'bout Spain? Or the Czech Republic?


They are options - we have options - that's the beauty of private health care. And we have a right to chose. It's just all on what your comfort level is.


* By 'regular', I mean non-PGD/S, non-ICSI, and excluding the 3-IVF package plans.