Oocyte donors: comparative analysis of two samples from Argentina and Spain on donor´s profile, motivations and anonymity

Abstract

Egg donation is the process where a woman donates oocytes to an assisted reproduction facility or a gamete bank for reproductive purposes (for a recipient woman) or for the purpose of using them for biomedical research. The treatment cycles where "donated" oocytes intervene are more and more frequent all over the world. Spain occupies the first place in Europe in oocyte donation according to 2016 data from the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE). In 2016, 13,823 cycles of treatment were performed in Argentina, with 2709 egg donation transfers (19.5%) (SAMeR, 2017). This study aims to visualize the socio-demographic profiles of two samples of oocyte donors from Argentina (n = 93) and from Spain (n = 49), the differences, if any, in the motivations presented by donors to enroll in oocyte donation programs and their attitudes towards anonymity. The study follows a quantitative methodology, while the inferences have been complemented with empirical research, specific literature and the revision of normative and regulatory documents. The data collection instrument was a questionnaire administered from March to October 2017 in three Fertility clinics (one of Buenos Aires and two from Madrid). It can be inferred from the results that in addition to the economic motivations, there are also altruistic reasons to become egg donors. Altruism is understood as the rhetorical construction of clinics and informed consents, designed to avoid mere mercantile consideration. Although a large percentage of women surveyed do not wish to meet people born from their eggs, most of them do believe that people should know the way they have been conceived.