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In the United States alone there are an estimated 6.7 million women of reproductive age with impaired fertility, which is defined as failure to conceive after a year or more of trying. And the problem is growing: the median age for first marriage in the U.S. has steadily increased, and women today often choose to delay childbirth until their late 30s or 40s in order to pursue and advance their careers. The downside for women deciding to postpone childbirth is an increased likelihood of encountering difficulty conceiving.
When other methods of assisted reproduction—such as hormone treatments to increase the number of eggs a woman releases with each cycle, or artificial insemination directly into the uterus—fail or are not applicable, in vitro fertilization (IVF) becomes one ...
