More than 100 women who had their eggs frozen at a leading NHS clinic have been told that they may have been damaged due to a fault in the freezing process.
The assisted conception unit at Guy’s hospital in London said it may have inadvertently used some bottles of a faulty freezing solution in September and October 2022. However, it said it did not know the liquid was defective at the time.
Many of the 136 women affected have subsequently had cancer treatment since having their eggs or embryos frozen, which may have left them infertile, The Times reported.
The patients have only recently been told their eggs and embryos may not survive the thawing process if they were frozen with the faulty solution.
The fertility regulator, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), is investigating.
It said a safety notice about the faulty freezing solution was issued by the authority to all clinics in February last year. However, this was several months after bottles from a faulty batch were used at Guy’s hospital’s assisted conception unit.
HFEA described the investigation at Guy’s hospital as “ongoing”, adding that it would take “any further action required”.
The regulator said that faulty egg-freezing products had also affected Jessop Fertility in Sheffield, but it said it was satisfied that Jessop “undertook a thorough investigation when they first became aware of the issue and contacted and supported any patient affected”.
“The HFEA can confirm that this issue is limited to two clinics in the UK: Guy’s and St Thomas’ Assisted Conception Unit, London and Jessop Fertility, Sheffield,” said Rachel Cutting, director of compliance and information at the HFEA, in a statement.
“Our ongoing investigation only relates to Guy’s as we are satisfied that Jessop’s undertook a thorough investigation when they first became aware of the issue and contacted and supported any patient affected.
“The company supplying the product directly to clinics will know exactly where it’s gone through their traceability processes. The company is also obliged to report any problems to the MHRA.”
“Any patients likely to have been affected will have been notified by their clinic. We hope this provides reassurance to anyone concerned.
“Fertility treatment in the UK is generally very safe. Our most recent report shows that out of the almost 100,000 treatment and storage cycles which took place in 2022/23, more than 99 per cent were conducted without any incidents occurring.”
Dr Piraye Yurttas Beim, researcher in molecular biology and embryology and founder of Celmatix, told Femtech World: “This is a reminder that the safest place for a woman’s eggs is in her own ovaries and not a freezer.
“Women lose their ovaries far too frequently due to a lack of diagnostics that would allow earlier detection of ovarian cancer and also due to ovarian damage from chemotherapy.
“Creating a new standard of care that protects ovarian function for women undergoing cancer treatment is a big focus for us at Celmatix. These stories are both heartbreaking and also a reminder of why we come to work everyday.”
Dr Cristina Hickman, a consultant clinical embryologist, lecturer at Imperial College London and co-founder of Ovom Care, said: “As an embryologist, I was devastated to learn of the unfortunate incident that has come to light at Guy’s hospital.
“Despite our best efforts to uphold the highest standards of care, incidents do occur, even if rarely. These errors, while rare, profoundly impact patients and the dedicated embryologists who strive to fulfil the shared goal of helping families conceive.
“It’s devastating news for those affected and they have our full support and we should wait to learn more from the professional team investigating this incident.
“But we must also recognise the tireless efforts of embryologists, who bear the weight of this responsibility and work diligently to maintain a low error rate.
“As fertility professionals, it’s our duty to utilise the most advanced tools available to minimise any risks that could affect our patients’ chances of having a baby. By embracing innovation and continually improving our practices, we can ensure that incidents like these become even rarer in the future.”
Sarah Norcross, director of the Progress Educational Trust (PET), commented: “It will be distressing for women with frozen eggs to learn that, due to problems outside their control, their eggs may not survive the thawing process.
“When a woman freezes her eggs, time is of the essence. In all cases, the quality of eggs declines upon reaching a certain age. Additionally, in cases where women are freezing eggs for medical reasons – for example, imminent cancer treatment – they will not want their treatment to be delayed.
“If women affected by this incident have undergone medical treatment which has compromised their fertility, then their opportunity to have a biologically related child may have been lost.
“If women affected by this incident had sought to extend their reproductive choices by freezing their eggs, then they too may have lost their best opportunity to have a family, if the quality of their eggs has declined during the period that has elapsed.”
She added: “We still do not know all the details of why this incident occurred. Hopefully, further details will be forthcoming. What does seem clear is that there was an appalling delay of around a year between this problem being known about, and affected patients being notified. Apparently, there are also some patients with frozen embryos who are similarly affected.
“We need to understand more about what precisely has gone wrong, and what the relevant regulators – including the HFEA and the MHRA – are doing about it. We also need reassurance, from regulators and clinics alike, that processes are in place to notify patients in a timely way when things go wrong.”
Becky Kearns, chief executive at Fertility Network UK, told Femtech World: “We are heartbroken to hear of the news that patients have potentially lost precious eggs and embryos.
“We want to reassure patients that incidents like this are extremely rare in the UK. We know that for many people, particularly those whose fertility has been impacted by cancer treatment, egg freezing can be a lifeline and can often be the difference between being able to have the family they have longed for.”
“As the national fertility charity, we urge anyone who may have been affected by this news, directly or indirectly, to please reach out to us for support. You are not alone.”
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