No News is Good News

There's no news yet on try number four. We should know either today or tomorrow. I think both D and I are afraid to get excited or to jinx anything because we've both deliberately not mentioned the fact that right around now is the time that we should be testing. We had a consultation with Dr. Jaffe to reassess our situation given the past few unsuccessful attempts. I had anticipated that Dr. J would remind us that the chances for success drop significantly after three failed attempts, but she actually encouraged us to keep trying IUI with a slight change in our drug regimen (she suggested that we try four more times before considering more extreme -- more expensive -- measures). Most hetero couples try for six to twelve months on their own before seeking treatment at fertility clinics, so Dr. J reasoned that the available stats wouldn't be accurate for us, given that we hadn't had the months of trials before beginning treatmentm. She suggested adding Gonal-F injections into the mix. She also tested D's hormone levels to determine whether something else might need to be adjusted in our treatment plan. The results showed that D had slightly elevated DHEAS levels (androgens that have something to do with insulin resistance), which can, apparently be corrected with a perscription. This could have a slight effect on egg quality and lessen our chances for pregnancy. However, when the doctors were looking over D's chart, they realized that she might be a good candidate for a certain drug trial that the Center is particapating in. Our participation would afford us one free cycle of IVF, which is not covered by our health insurance carrier and normally costs about the price of a car. Participation requires that D not take any drugs besides the one that's the focus of the trial, so the doctors chose not to correct the slight hormonal imblance that they uncovered. The ovary stimulation drug involved in the trial has already been approved in Europe and has been in use for quite some time. We're going to discuss this option further should try number four prove a failure. Keep your fingers crossed, rub your Budha's belly, and I'll be back to post in a couple days.