Take the stress out of conceiving with a genetic illness
The thought of conceiving with a genetic illness can be concerning for parents. However, Midwest Fertility Specialists (MFS) offers testing and treatments that can prevent the transmission of such a disorder to your future children. If you or your partner have or carry an inheritable genetic disorder, our Indiana fertility clinic can help.
Your options for conceiving with a genetic illness
In the past, parents at-risk for transmitting a genetic illness had to simply hope that their children wouldn’t have it, or they would use donor eggs or sperm. Today, reproductive medicine offers a specific type of preimplantation genetic testing (PGT-M, or preimplantation genetic testing for monogenic/single gene defects) that can provide peace of mind when conceiving with a genetic disorder.
Formerly called preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), PGT-M is a type of testing that can occur as part of an in vitro fertilization (IVF) cycle. When our Indiana fertility clinic uses this test, it’s possible to screen embryos for a specific genetic disorder. Our doctors then use the test results to only transfer embryos that do not have or carry the disorder.
How does IVF with PGT-M work?
Patients conceiving with a genetic illness can opt for this specialized testing. They will undergo an IVF cycle that has one key difference. Our embryologists remove a few cells from each embryo on the fifth or sixth day after fertilization. This biopsy occurs on the outer layer of the embryo, which will become the placenta.
Our IVF laboratory team then sends the biopsied cells to a reference genetics laboratory. There, the laboratory will screen for the specific genetic disorder of concern. Some common examples are cystic fibrosis, sickle cell disease and hemophilia.
While our Indiana fertility center awaits the test results, the embryos remain frozen. Upon receiving the results, the doctor will only transfer an embryo that is free of the genetic illness.
Welcoming a baby without the worry of transmitting a genetic illness
Conceiving with a genetic illness is possible and safe with PGT-M. If you’d like to learn more about this state-of-the-art treatment, contact our Indiana fertility clinic for an appointment. Together, we can end the cycle of genetic illness.