Our Patients' Stories

"We had been through two failed cycles in Hong Kong before coming to Saipan. After the second failure our Hong Kong doctor suggested donor eggs — we weren't ready to give up on our own. The team here adjusted my stimulation protocol significantly. We retrieved 11 eggs, 7 mature, got 2 embryos to day five. One was chromosomally normal. That one worked. She arrived last October."

"I'm 37 and not in a position to start a family yet. I looked at clinics in Thailand and in Shanghai, but the US-standard lab and no visa requirement pushed me toward Saipan. The coordinator kept me updated in Mandarin every day, sometimes more than I needed. The process took 13 days. Not glamorous, but straightforward. I now have 9 mature eggs stored and feel less like I'm racing the clock."

"As a same-sex couple, legal protection was the only thing that mattered. US mainland was too expensive and required visas we didn't have. Georgia doesn't recognize same-sex couples. Saipan gave us US law without the US price tag or the visa. The pre-birth order took about three months and required more paperwork than we expected, but the clinic's coordinator walked us through every step. Our boys have US passports."

"My wife was diagnosed with premature ovarian failure at 34. In Beijing we were told donor eggs were our only realistic option, but donor IVF isn't available there. We found SIVF through a forum post from another couple in a similar situation. The matching process for a donor took about six weeks. First transfer didn't work. Second transfer did. Our son is almost two now. The US birth certificate still surprises us every time we look at it."

"I tried IVF twice in Japan. The clinics are efficient but there's almost no room to ask questions, and genetic testing of embryos isn't standard practice there. At SIVF I had a 45-minute call with Dr. Ramsey before I even booked my flights. The first transfer didn't take. The second did. My son was born in March."

"I was 39. Our Hong Kong clinic was honest that our chances were low, and so was the team at SIVF. What was different was they explained exactly why and what we could do about it. We got 3 embryos to day five. Only one passed genetic testing — but that one worked on the first transfer. My daughter just turned 18 months."