Salon 1
Reproductive Decision Making and Your Career: Embracing Biology, Debunking Myths, and Gaining Control (303349)
*Samantha F Butts, Perelman School of MedicineKeywords: Oocyte vitrification, egg freezing, fertility, reproductive decision-making
The past five years have seen significant progress in options available for reproductive life planning with the publication of Mature oocyte cryopreservation: a guideline by the American Society for Reproductive Medicine in 2012. This document presented strong evidence that oocyte vitrification (“egg freezing”) should no longer be considered experimental and has created a ripple effect of greater utilization of elective egg freezing to circumvent reproductive aging. Facebook and Apple’s offer to cover a portion of the cost of egg freezing as an employee benefit brought the old debate about reproductive decision making into new focus: was this coverage empowering or was it subtle corporate coercion to delay childbearing? The aim of this presentation is to introduce several key elements important for reproductive decision-making: the facts of female reproductive biology and aging, the standard approach to assessing fertility, and the logistics and risks of modern fertility preservation methods. It is hoped that the audience will come away from this presentation better informed about their reproductive health and how to access resources to make decisions from an empowered position.