But the process of egg donation exposes women to harmful and even deadly situations. The process requires the donor to take injections of powerful hormones over many weeks that stop her ovarian function (in order for her menstrual cycle to occur when researchers desire or to match her menstrual cycle to that of an egg donation recipient so that she may be able to receive the egg) and make her super-ovulate in order to produce multiple eggs. She then receives a hormonal injection to release all the matured eggs from her ovaries and then undergoes a surgical procedure to collect the eggs from her ovaries.
Before any of that happens though, the process of egg donation relies on the exploitation of vulnerable women, particularly desperate college-aged women in need of money. What the advertisement fails to include are carefully screened physical and psychological requirements set forth by researchers and egg recipients (the existence of requirements, however, is vaguely mentioned on Montefiore’s website). These physical and psychological requirements often include specific heights, IQ scores, complexions, ethnicities, and religions. The list goes on. According to Jennifer Lahl, founder of The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network and creator of the movie Eggsploitation, Jewish, Asian and higher-scoring SAT donors often make more money than other donors. Lahl has also found through her research that “the application process is not intended to ensure the safety and the well-being of the donor, but to ensure the buyer of the eggs gets the best possible genetic material.” If a donor’s eggs are not “the best possible genetic material” as deemed by the researcher or the egg recipient, if she does not produce the desired amount of eggs, or the egg recipient changes her mind, a donor may not even receive the $8,000. Through egg donation, women in result become mere commodities where researchers and egg recipients have binders full of women to choose from at their fingertips.
Often compared to organ donation, egg donation is often viewed as altruistic. Lahl however states: “In organ donation, the donor assumes risks to her own health in order to save a patient’s life — to help a sick or dying person. But the recipient of the egg donor’s gametes is not sick or unhealthy — not a patient, but a consumer, purchasing her eggs. The end purpose of the donation is importantly different, and therefore, not analogous to organ donation. ”
The risks of the egg donation process include stroke, cancer, the loss of future fertility, death in rare instances and the most prevalent side affect of Ovarian Hyper-Stimulation Syndrome. Is $8,000 really worth all of these risks? In reality, the compensation does not wind up being $8,000 in the end after all. This fails to include the hundreds of dollars that must be paid for follow-up doctor appointments and missed work, not to mention all of the classes college-aged donors miss as well.
While there are risks to everything in life, this industry does not guarantee any protection or care to women in any degree because there are no laws or regulations that protect egg donors. This is visible on Montefiore’s website and in its advertisement because neither mention protecting donors. Why should any woman expose herself to such risks when she will not be protected in any way? Furthermore, there are no federal registries or national databases that keep track of egg donors. What then happens to the harmed donor? Who can she turn to? Who speaks for her? Where is her story? She is unheard and becomes “eggsploited.”
In order to ensure the health, inherent dignity and beautiful uniqueness of each and every woman that we are obligated and committed to protecting, we respectfully ask that The Fordham Ram discontinue including future advertisements for egg donations because it endorses a crime against women.
Thank you,
Respect for Life Executive Board
Joe Moreshead, Amy Gembara, Meg Horgan, Ruthanne Sobecki, John Tracey and Mike Prescia
