Researchers have been looking into this question and the answer is that failed IVF may be very similar to failed organ transplants. A team of fertility specialists from the Human Reproduction or CHR in New York says that the process of rejecting implanted embryos following IVF treatment is much like the process during which patients who received transplanted organs found their bodies rejecting those. Could this be the reason why around half of IVF cycles fail? The study's lead researcher Dr Norbert Gleicher (also the medical director of CHR) and his team started exploring the effects of autoimmunity on IVF cycles and their possible failure. They found that women who have autoimmune diseases have higher odds of going through unsuccessful rounds of IVF interesting, isn't it?
He said: "Implantation is an immunologic process. Because the genetic material of the implanting embryo is half paternal, for the mother's immune system, the embryo is analogous to an organ transplant. Under normal circumstances, however, this transplant is not rejected." Alan Handyside, director of the London Bridge Fertility Centre, said to ABC news about the subject: "If there are abnormal embryos, there is nothing we can do about that. This is ultimately about identifying [people most likely to experience IVF failure] and preventing women from going through the stress of multiple failed IVF cycles." That may just explain a lot, and also pave the way for better success rates for those trying to get pregnant with cycles of invitro fertilization in the future. What do you think? Have you experienced unsuccessful rounds of IVF, and what do you think was behind that?
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