“Surrogacy” refers to any family building process in which one woman intentionally becomes pregnant with a baby that another couple or individual will parent.  Although surrogacy originally involved a woman carrying and delivering a child (or children) conceived with her egg and the intended father’s sperm, the arrival of In Vitro Fertilization in 1978 enabled women to carry babies that were not their genetic children.  IVF opened the way for infertile couples who could create embryos, but were not able to carry and deliver them, to have their full genetically related children through surrogacy.  IVF, with egg donation and surrogacy, also opened the way for infertile couples to have a child genetically related to the intended father in instances when the intended mother could neither provide eggs nor carry a pregnancy.

Definitions of the two types of surrogacy are:

Traditional Surrogacy:  An arrangement between the Intended parents of the child and a woman who agrees to be artificially inseminated with the sperm of the intended father or sperm donor.  The surrogate is genetically related to the child.

Gestational Surrogacy:  An arrangement between the Intended parents of the child and a woman who agrees to carry the embryo(s) created from the eggs and sperm of the intended parents or their donor(s).  The surrogate is not genetically related to the child.  A to Z Consulting specializes in helping people with Gestational Surrogacy.

Who Turns to Gestational Surrogacy?

Gestational surrogacy offers couples who have embryos they cannot carry or who can create embryos the opportunity to have their fully genetically related children.   These include couples in which the intended mother has survived cancer or some obstetrical tragedy, as well as women with “incompetent” cervixes, medical conditions that advise against pregnancy and DES exposure. 

Gestational surrogacy is also attractive to couples who need an egg donor. Many prefer gestational Surrogacy to traditional surrogacy for the following reasons:

• The surrogate will not have a genetic connection to the child. The intended parents anticipate this will make it much easier for her to separate from the child.
   

• The intended parents may have a family member or close friend who wants to be their egg donor OR their gestational surrogate - but not both.
   

• The intended parents may seek different qualities in an egg donor than in a surrogate.