Popular health blogger and medical expert, Chinonso Egemba aka Aproko expert has debunked the common myths regarding egg freezing, warning that the process does not ensure pregnancy “anytime in life” as claimed online.
Egemba spoke today on his social media page via video about the myths surrounding the process, particularly the idea that women who store their eggs can have children at any age without any limitation.
Egg freezing, or oocyte cryopreservation as it’s technically called, entails removing a woman’s eggs and freezing them at very low temperatures for future use, he explained, writes . The PUNCH.
“Egg freezing is the process of taking out a woman’s eggs out of her body first… and then you take it to a very cold temperature, so cold that every biological activity stops until she is ready to use it,” he explained.
Egemba likened it to the process of canning foods, saying eggs are saved when they are young and healthy so they can be used later when needed.
He said the process begins with hormone injections over 10 to 14 days to induce the ovaries to generate numerous eggs instead of the regular monthly discharge.
“First the doctor will give you hormone injections… to make your ovaries produce more eggs,” he said.
He stated when the eggs are mature, they are collected with a little needle under ultrasound guidance, when the patient is asleep.
The eggs are then frozen quickly using a process called vitrification and stored at around minus 196 degrees Celsius.
At that temperature, he stated, biological activity is totally halted, allowing for long-term storage.
“Women freeze eggs for a variety of reasons, including career planning, delayed childbearing, or medical conditions like cancer treatment that may affect fertility,” Egemba added.
But he cautioned that egg preservation doesn’t ensure conception.
“Please, I want you to listen to this part carefully. “Freezing your eggs is not like having a baby in the bank,” he warned.
“Not all eggs survive thawing, fertilisation or development into a viable pregnancy even with modern techniques,” he said.
“Not all the eggs survive… not all fertilise… not all result in a successful pregnancy,” he stated.
A 2024 report from CCRM Fertility also supports his assertion, stating, “The chances of getting pregnant after implantation of frozen eggs are about 30 to 60 per cent.
But these numbers can change depending on a variety of things. Not all eggs will become viable embryos and not all embryos will result in live birth. “Therefore, we collect and store more eggs in the process of cryopreservation.
Egemba also said egg freezing doesn’t prevent pregnancy or protect against sexually-transmitted illnesses.
“Egg freezing has nothing to do with contraception or STIs. Absolutely nothing,” he stated.
Egemba also refuted the idea that frozen eggs are inferior to fresh eggs, and noted that breakthroughs in fertility medicine have exponentially boosted success rates.
He asked Nigerians to follow trained fertility doctors and not social media or hearsays in making decision on fertility preservation.
“If you’re thinking about this for any reason… please go and talk to a certified fertility specialist,” he urged.
He noted that physicians will examine a woman’s ovarian reserve before determining if egg freezing is the right move.
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