Unlike traditional IVF protocols where patients undergo a single round of ovarian stimulation with fertility drugs and egg retrieval in one menstrual cycle, in the DuoStim protocol patients undergo two rounds of ovarian stimulation and two egg retrievals in the same menstrual cycle (hence the name DuoStim). The second round of stimulation in a DuoStim protocol can be started just 3-4 days after the first egg pick up, recruiting a “second wave” of follicles in the ovary, therefore allowing a second egg collection in the same menstrual cycle. This novel strategy not only leads to an increase, sometimes even substantial, in the number of eggs the second time round, it even tends to improve the quality of the eggs, as indicated by better blastocyst formation rates, seen in the majority of patients in the second part of DuoStim.

It is important to note that all embryos obtained via the DuoStim protocol need to be frozen, and therefore have to be transferred in a subsequent frozen embryo transfer cycle.

At IVF, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, we have created a special pricing package to offset some of the costs of two separate IVF cycles. Please make an appointment with our clinical team to find out if DuoStim is the appropriate treatment for you.