Donor Embryos
Fertility Method: Embryos are donated by couples undergoing IVF who become pregnant and no longer need unused fertilized eggs. The donated embryo is then transferred into the recipient.

Best Suited For: Couples in which both woman and man are infertile but want to experience a pregnancy.

Success Rates*: Approximately 20% to 30% of women become pregnant.

Pros: Enables infertile women to have the childbearing experience. Less costly than traditional adoption, which ranges from $7,000 to $50,000.

Cons: Might be difficult to find donated embryos because couples are reluctant to give them up even if they don't plan to use them right away. Also, legal and medical screening can be confusing.

Costs: Cost of implanting the embryo inside the uterus through IVF, plus about $4,500 for agency and legal fees and medical and psychological screening of the prospective parents.

Emotional Toll: Concerns that baby isn't related to either parent genetically.

Sources: DAVID ADAMSON, M.D., clinical professor at Stanford University and CEO of Advanced Reproductive Care, a national network of infertility specialists in Palo Alto, CA; KENNETH A. BURRY, M.D., director of the division of reproductive endocrinology and fertility at the Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland; SANDRA A. CARSON, M.D., reproductive endocrinologist at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in Birmingham, AL; DIANE CLAPP, medical information director at RESOLVE in Boston; JOANNE D. EIMAN of the Snowflake Embryo Adoption Program in Fullerton, CA; ELAINE R. GORDON, Ph.D., a Los Angeles psychologist specializing in reproductive medicine; PAMELA MADSEN, executive director of the American Infertility Association in New York City; RICHARD J. PAULSON, M.D., reproductive endocrinologist and director of the fertility program at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles; psychologist HARRIET F. SIMONS, Ph.D., author of Wanting Another Child: Coping With Secondary Infertility; SHIRLEY ZAGER, volunteer director of Organization of Parents Through Surrogacy in Gurnee, IL

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