Five million ‘test tube babies’ born since dawning of IVF era

Experts based the estimate on worldwide figures for In-Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment cycles up to 2008.

The emerging pattern was extended to gauge how many more treatments took place over the next three years.

The cumulative number of IVF births in total stood at 4.6 million last year and is now believed to have reached five million.

Passing the five million milestone represented a “moment of pride” for fertility scientists, according to a British member of the team that brought the first IVF baby into the world.

When Louise Brown was born at Oldham General Hospital on July 25, 1978, it caused a sensation.

The birth of a “test tube baby”, as Louise was described in the media at the time, was hugely controversial and sparked an intense ethical debate.

But British experts pointed out yesterday that IVF had now become routine in many parts of the world.

Dr Allan Pacey, chair of the British Fertility Society and senior lecturer in andrology at the University of Sheffield, said: “Everyone expected the proportion of IVF treatment cycles to plateau, but it hasn’t. Year-on-year we have seen what is effectively a linear rise.

“I think it’s more than just older women relying on IVF; I think it’s more about accessibility, social acceptability, funding issues, and to an extent that IVF is part of the mainstream now.”

Colleague Stuart Lavery, consultant gynaecologist and director of IVF at Hammersmith Hospital in London, said: “IVF is something couples are no longer ashamed of. The profile is becoming more acceptable and it’s also becoming more successful.”

The five million figure was announced at the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (Eshre) taking place in Istanbul, Turkey.

Dr David Adamson, chair of the International Committee for Monitoring Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ICMART), which made the calculation, said: “Millions of families with children have been created, thereby reducing the burden of infertility.

“The technology has improved greatly over the years to increase pregnancy rates. The babies are as healthy as those from other infertile patients who conceive spontaneously. The technology is available globally in many different countries.”

Dr Simon Fishel, managing director of clinic chain CARE Fertility UK and a member of the Cambridge team responsible for the birth of Louise Brown, said: “I remember well the time of Louise’s birth, and also transferring the embryo that became her sister, both of whom are now mums in their own right.

“The five million milestone not only justifies all the legal and moral battles, the ethical debates and hard-fought social approval, it is also a testament to the great scientists and doctors who have worked so hard to improve the treatment of patients, and to the patients themselves who have put their faith in us.”

Other ICMART data show that each year, around 1.5 million assisted reproduction treatment cycles are performed globally, delivering some 350,000 babies.

Europe is the most active IVF region in the world, with the US and Japan topping the list of individual countries.

In 2009 the UK had an IVF rate of 879 treatment cycles per million members of the population per year.

IVF take-up is much greater in Denmark and Belgium, with rates of 2,726 cycles per million and 2,562 cycles per million respectively.

Success rates from a single “fresh” IVF treatment cycle appear to have stabilised at around 32 per cent per embryo transfer, the Eshre meeting was told.

Mr Lavery stressed that despite the success of IVF it should never be regarded as an “insurance policy” for women who want to delay pregnancy as long as possible.

IVF is not very effective for women some way past their reproductive prime, he said.