Being prepared^{1, 2}

It’s good to be optimistic about success, but also to know what might not work

Here are a few of the ways in which IVF treatment might not work according to plan. Your clinic will discuss these with you and what to do if any of them happen to you. You can find a more extensive list on the HFEA website.

Not enough eggs

Sometimes your body won’t respond as expected to the egg-stimulating treatments. There can be ways to
overcome this, such as trying a different treatment plan or different doses of treatments. However, you
might need to start a new IVF cycle to try this. Your clinic doctor will be able to explain this to you in more
detail.

Eggs don’t fertilise or develop

Your eggs might have been collected and mixed with sperm, but then fail to fertilise or develop into healthy
and good quality embryos.

Embryo doesn’t implant

After you’ve had your embryo transferred back into your womb, it might fail to take hold in the lining,
resulting in a negative pregnancy test.

Pregnancy ends in a miscarriage

You might get a positive pregnancy test result, indicating that your IVF treatment has been successful, but
then experience a miscarriage. This can be a devastating experience for any couple, especially when you’ve
had all the ups and downs of IVF to get pregnant in the first place.

Remember whatever happens – support is there for you:

• The Miscarriage Association is a nationwide charity that can provide an empathetic ear, or recommend a support group local to you.
• The Fertility Network UK has some useful factsheets on coping with miscarriage and pregnancy loss.