Aussie scientists lead IVF breakthrough that will boost birth rate

AUSTRALIAN scientists have pioneered a breakthrough in IVF treatment that is seeing a 46.7 per cent increase in the number of viable high-grade embryos per cycle.

The cutting edge process allows embryos to grow in a petri-dish undisturbed for five to six days mirroring the journey in the mother’s fallopian tubes prior to implantation in the uterus.

It’s the closest process yet to inside the mother’s womb.

Scientists at Australian IVF clinic Genea have come up with a new version of continuous culture fluid — closer to that found in the human body — that when used in conjunction with a unique timelapse incubator is having a dramatic impact on the number of high-grade embryos achieved per cycle.

A study of 1200 Australian patients and 6000 embryos from August 2016 to March 2017 showed the process of using the new fluid and incubator together resulted in a 46.7 per cent increase when compared to a traditional culture and medium system.

International clinics in Europe, Japan, Canada, China and the US are now vying to get their hands on the new system.

The new culture medium can be used across all stages of embryo growth — enabling undisturbed growth and reducing unfavourable exposure to the elements.

The timelapse incubator means scientists no longer have to remove growing embryos from their optimum environment for monitoring.

In the Genea Geri incubator each individual family’s embryos are housed in their own unique chamber — unlike other traditional embryo-growth storage where all cycles being conducted are held together meaning when one needs attending to all get disturbed.

Genea’s medical director Mark Bowman said the study showed the new system could result in more babies being born in Australia and globally.

“It’s fair to say that if a patient has more viable embryos for transfer or freeze it’s likely we will make more babies per egg collection,” associate professor Bowman said.

“(This) presents a significant cost and emotional benefit to patients and a saving for the government.”

One in six Australian couples suffer infertility and around 1 in every 25 Australian births are a result of IVF.

In 2014 a total of 12,875 Australian babies were born as a result of Assisted Reproductive Technologies, up 21 per cent from 2010.

Steven McArthur, Genea scientific director whose team has been responsible for pioneering the new process, said he has been working in the field since 1989 and this is by far the most exciting time.

“To be able to recreate the process as close as possible to the human body is definitely the most exciting thing,” Mr McArthur said.

“But the whole notion of what Genea is trying to achieve is that patients can get more embryos from one hormone stimulation and can potentially get their whole family from one cycle.”

Michael Chapman, president of the Fertility Society of Australia and specialist with rival clinic IVF Australia, questioned if the process was a breakthrough until pregnancy data could be shown.

“I admire them for keeping the science moving forward but the most important thing is not having more embryos it is having high quality pregnancy data at the end of it,” he said.

GIVING BIRTH TO A MIRACLE

LITTLE Harvey Brown is a miracle.

The four-month-old, blue-eyed, smiley boy was the result of IVF treatment that collected just one egg, giving mum Alyce and dad Jesse one shot at success before going through the entire process of three needles a day, blood tests and emotional turmoil all over again.

For many going through-vitro fertilisation to achieve their dream of having a baby, they know the heartache of getting multiple eggs from one cycle and having none of them result in a pregnancy, only to have to go back to square one.

The financial and emotional toll is significant with prospective parents out of pocket thousands of dollars per cycle.

But a team of Australian scientists is changing the game for families struggling to have a baby by pioneering a new way of conducting IVF that is seeing a 46.7 per cent increase in the number of high-grade embryos per cycle.

For Alyce, 30, and Jesse, 29, it was a three-year journey to get little Harvey. The couple tried naturally for 18-months before turning to IVF.

“Despite being quite young I had a very low egg count which was reducing our chances of falling pregnant naturally,” Ms Brown told News Corp Australia.

Once they began their cycle with Genea they collected just one egg — a disheartening fact given the chance of success with one egg is normally so low.

But Alyce and Jesse’s egg was fertilised and grown into an embryo in Genea’s special Geri incubator and unique culture medium meaning it got the closest thing to growing in Alyce’s own womb as possible.

“When we were told that Harvey was the result of this breakthrough process I got goosebumps,” Ms Brown told News Corp Australia.

“There is no doubt in my mind this process was the reason our one little egg Harvey survived and thrived.”