Everything you need to know about egg freezing as average age of motherhood reaches record high

Australian women are becoming mothers later than ever, prompting more to freeze their eggs — but a leading specialist has warned timing remains critical to future success.

The median age of mothers has reached a record 32 years, while the number of women having babies in their early 40s has more than doubled over the past three decades.

At the same time, new national IVF data have revealed a growing number of women are using eggs they froze years earlier.

But what does the process involve, when should women consider it, and what are the chances it will ultimately result in a baby?

Fertility specialist Dr Joe Sgroi told Sunrise the decision was rarely shaped by a single factor.

“There’s a range of complex issues, namely social and also economic issues,” he said.

“Women are choosing to stay and participate in the workforce for a lot longer but, of course, also trying to find a partner.

“I always say you contemplate pregnancy when you’re physically, financially, socially, emotionally and medically ready to do so.”

Sgroi said egg freezing allowed women to preserve younger eggs until they felt ready to try to become a mother.

Women considering the procedure are encouraged to seek advice tailored to their individual circumstances.

“The younger you are when you’re making a reproductive choice to elect to freeze your eggs, probably the better,” he said.

The likelihood of a future pregnancy depends heavily on a woman’s age when her eggs are collected, rather than her age when she returns to use them.

“We know that for a woman at the age of 35, we’re going to need to have around 20 eggs frozen to give it a 90 per cent chance of having a live birth,” Sgroi said.

The age at which those eggs were frozen remains crucial if they are used years later.

“Your chance of pregnancy is not the age that you’re coming back to use the eggs, but it’s rather when you have frozen the eggs,” Sgroi said.

“So, the younger you are, the better quality eggs and, more importantly, the better chance you’re going to have of being a mother later on in life.

“I’m seeing something quite magical and that’s patients of mine and patients of other fertility specialists who have frozen their eggs some 10 odd years ago and they’re coming back now to utilise those eggs to create little babies.”

Sgroi said eggs could technically remain frozen for decades.

However, freezing younger eggs does not remove the increased health risks associated with becoming pregnant at an older age.

“We’d be certainly encouraging women to come back as soon as they feel reasonably satisfied they’re ready to be a mum to utilise those eggs,” Sgroi said.

“We want to have a healthy outcome for pregnancy.”

Sgroi stressed that freezing eggs offered women another chance to have a biological child but could not guarantee a successful pregnancy.

“The biggest risk, unfortunately, for some women is they do return and perhaps those eggs, while they are giving them the chance of future fertility, there’s absolutely no guarantee that there’s a baby with utilising those eggs,” he said.

“We’re encouraging women to come back if they want to be a mother sooner rather than later.”