All in the family: social processes in ovarian egg donation between sisters

Abstract

Interviews and participant observation were conducted at a US infertility clinic with women who were attempting to become pregnant with eggs donated by their biological sisters. Sisters who donated eggs were also followed and interviewed regarding their experiences, as were a number of husbands of recipients. Five significant social processes characterising the sisters' passage through egg donation are discussed: (1) negotiating dissimilar treatment experiences, (2) communicating cautiously, (3) interacting in a triad, (4) disclosing to others, and (5) 'giftgiving'. Although participants are generally satisfied with their decision to do sister-to-sister egg donation, the unprecedented procedure presents a number of difficulties. If sister-to-sister egg donation as a means to biological motherhood continues in the future, these sociological findings suggest areas in which medical personnel may need to provide social and emotional support.

Challenges in intra-family donation

“…In the early days of IVF egg donors tended to be known. Some US fertility experts advocated sister-to-sister donation rather than anonymous donation (Lessor, 1993). Studies at that time reported positive attitudes towards egg donation by sisters among infertile couples (Sauer, 1988) and the broader public (Lessor, et al, 1990).…”

“…The perceived importance of motherhood and coming frmn a large family wer e also reported as reasons to donate (Warren and Blood, 2003). In intergenerational donation, similarly there is a strong sense of helping the parent or child, and of providing a 'gift from the heart' (Lessor, 1993;Nikolettos er al., 2003;Winter and Daniluk, 2004).…”

“…So, for example, wit h sisters the donor will be aunt to the child and her own children will be half-siblings of the donor child. While the donor may see herself as a rather special aunt, her own children may remain unaware of their new half-siblings and the mother may prefer to emphasize her sister hood with the donor and her motherhood of the child she has carried (Lessor, 1993). As these half-siblings may resemble one another, there will always be a risk that they or others may come to realise the true relationship between them, and it is not known how those who become aware that they are half-siblings rather than cousins will feel about their family circumstances.…”

Oocyte donors’ experiences of altruistic known donation: a qualitative study

“…Despite the increasing reliance on altruistic oocyte donation in some jurisdictions due to legal prohibitions on donor compensation, and patients' preference in using a known donor for pragmatic or personal reasons (Khamsi, Endman, Lacanna, & Wong, 1997;Lessor, 1993;Winter & Daniluk, 2004), relatively few studies have reported the experiences of altruistic known donors during or following donation. Most are found among studies that include a subset of altruistic known donors among other types of donors in the study population (Baetens, Devroey, Camus, van Steirteghem, & Ponjaert-Kristoffersen, 2000;Fielding, Handley, Duqueno, Weaver, & Lui, 1998;Greenfeld, Mazure, Olive, & Keefe, 1995;Kirkland et al, 1992;Sauer & Paulson, 1992;Weil, Cornet, Sibony, Mandelbaum, & Salat-Baroux, 1994).…”

“…Most are found among studies that include a subset of altruistic known donors among other types of donors in the study population (Baetens, Devroey, Camus, van Steirteghem, & Ponjaert-Kristoffersen, 2000;Fielding, Handley, Duqueno, Weaver, & Lui, 1998;Greenfeld, Mazure, Olive, & Keefe, 1995;Kirkland et al, 1992;Sauer & Paulson, 1992;Weil, Cornet, Sibony, Mandelbaum, & Salat-Baroux, 1994). In-depth accounts of known donors' experiences are found in two studies only (Lessor, 1993;Winter & Daniluk, 2004). These limited empirical data have found that altruistic donors are primarily empathically motivated to help a recipient with whom they have a relationship to achieve their parenting aspirations.…”