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The Agence de la biomédecine needs to double the number of donors to cope with continuing demand

Published on 2 July 2024

Press release

    On Monday July1

    , the2nd

    meeting of the national monitoring committee for the 2022-2026 ministerial plan for Human Reproduction, Embryology and Genetics (PEGh) was held, with the aim of mobilizing all available levers to promote equitable access to quality care, in the light of medical, scientific and societal changes.

    Set up by the Agence de la biomédecine, at the request of the French Minister for Health and Prevention, the aim of this national committee is to bring together all stakeholders* twice a year to monitor the implementation of the plan's various priorities, listen to concerns on the ground and identify any difficulties that could give rise to measures for improvement. On this occasion, the Agence de la biomédecine unveiled the latest figures from its survey of gamete donation and self-preservation centers across France, monitoring the implementation of the Bioethics Act.

    The number of donors remains insufficient, and the Agence de la biomédecine warns of the need to mobilize more donors to meet ever-increasing demand.

    A clear increase in first attempts at MAP with sperm donation, but demand remains high and donations insufficient

    Since the enactment of the French bioethics law, the number of first attempts at medically assisted procreation with sperm donation has risen at an unprecedented rate. Nearly **35,000 requests for1st

    consultation** for MPA with sperm donation have been received from female couples and single women, including almost 13,000 in 2023. This trend has stabilized compared with 2022, when 15,000 first-time consultation requests were recorded.

    Since the law was enacted, nearly 20,430 first consultations for MPA with sperm donation and 7,360 first attempts have been carried out for female couples or single women. By 2023, over 8,500 first consultations had been carried out.

    With regard to the profile of women seen for the first consultation:

    For female couples, 28% are aged between 25 and 29, 34% are aged between 30 and 34 and 28% are aged between 35 and 45; For single women, 23% are aged between 30 and 34 and 69% are aged between 35 and 45; i.e. a large majority; For female/male couples, 40% are aged between 30 and 34 and 36% are aged between 35 and 45.

    The Agence de la biomédecine highlights a sharp rise in the number of first attempts, with more than 5,300 first attempts in 2023, compared with 1981 in 2022, reflecting a marked increase in patient care.

    As of December 31, 2023, nearly 7,600 women were waiting for PGD with sperm donation, up from 5,650 in December 2022.

    This waiting list is made up of :

    44% single women, 38% women in a couple with a woman, 18% women in a couple with a man.

    The average waiting time for PGD with sperm donation is getting longer. By December 31, 2023, from the time an appointment is booked to the first attempt, the delay was 15.5 months nationally (compared with 14.4 months in 2022).

    At the end of December 2023, there were around 1,100 births to couples and unmarried women as a result of these attempts.

    The number of candidates for sperm donation is still too low (676 in 2023 versus 714 in 2022) to meet the massive demand. At least 1,400 donors a year would be needed to meet this demand.

    At the same time, particular attention is being paid to the development of chaff stocks. From April1,

    2025, the so-called "old regime" donation stock, which numbered 32,543 sperm straws at the end of March 2024, will no longer be available for use. Only gametes from donors who have consented to access to their origins may be distributed. This new stock numbered 52,305 straws on March 31, 2024.

    New active recruitment campaigns are planned for 2024 to massively increase the number of donors.

    Waiting times stabilize for oocyte donation MPA, but the number of donations remains insufficient

    As regards the waiting list for couples and unmarried women for MPA with oocyte donation, it stood at 2,430 requests on December 31, 2023, a figure up on December 2022 (2,080) :

    This list is made up of :

    88.1% female/male couples 10.2% single women 1.7% female couples

    The average time from initial appointment to first attempt has stabilized compared with 2022. At December 31, 2023, it averaged 24 months nationwide (23 months in 2022).

    With regard to oocyte donation, the Agence de la biomédecine notes that the number of donations is still insufficient, with 890 candidates for donation on December 31, 2023 (compared with 990 in 2022).

    Demand for non-medical oocyte self-preservation remains high

    Nearly 26,740 requests for an initial consultation for oocyte self-preservation have been made since the law came into force. The number of requests stabilized in the second half of 2023 (nearly 7,580 requests) compared with the first half of 2023 (7,616 requests).

    The number of first consultations and non-medical self-conservations increased in 2023. 3,251 consultations were carried out (3,108 in 2022) and 2,552 people benefited from self-preservation (2,138 in 2022).

    The average waiting time for treatment varies from one region to another. It is around 10 months at national level, and 14 months for the Île-de-France region.

    As regards the profile of women seen for an initial consultation :

    3.9% were aged 29, 31.7% were aged between 30 and 34, 64.4% were aged between 35 and 37.

    *Stakeholders:

    • Ministry of Health and Prevention - Health Department
    • Ministère de la Santé et de la Prévention - Direction Générale de l'Offre de Soins
    • Regional health agencies
    • Technical agency for information on hospitalization
    • Conférence des présidents des commissions médicales d'établissement des CHU (Conference of presidents of university hospital medical boards)
    • Conférence des directeurs généraux de CHRU de France
    • National Health Insurance Fund
    • National Center for Care Abroad
    • Association COLLECTIF BAMP!
    • Association Mam'ensolo
    • Les Enfants d'Arc en Ciel - l'asso !
    • Association don d'ovocytes, spermatozoïdes un espoir
    • Association of gay and lesbian parents and future parents (APGL)
    • Association Afrique Avenir
    • Association Dons de gamètes solidaires
    • Association PMAnonyme
    • Ovocyte Donation Study Group (GEDO)
    • Ovary and Testis Conservation Research and Study Group (GRECOT)
    • Study Group on In Vitro Fertilization in France (GEFF)
    • National College of Gynecologists and Obstetricians of France (CNGOF)
    • National Federation of Medical Gynecology Colleges (FNCGM)
    • Fédération nationale des biologistes des laboratoires d'étude de la fécondation et de la conservation de l'œuf

    (BLEFCO)

    • Collective of French private AMP centers (CCP)
    • Society for Reproductive Medicine (SMR)
    • National Federation of Human Egg and Sperm Study and Conservation Centers (CECOS)
    • Gamete donation centers

    Further information

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