Question for the IVF pros

Jen071407

Can anyone recommend a good website for info on IVF protocols? I know I've got a while (and an IUI cycle) between now and when I'll get to the big kahuna, but I'm trying to price out meds (and I'm obsessing. So what?! Leave me alone!) This is what my RE told me I'd likely be doing, with adjustments based on labs of course:

BC 21 days

?? lupron (I didn't write this down and can't remember, but I thought he said BC, then lupron for 10ish days, does that sound right? And if so, how much Lupron should I price out?)

150 gonal f and 75 menorpur for 10 days

Thanks ya'll! 

pettycrocker

Lupron is cheap, if you're doing a long Lupron cycle (that's what it seems like) you'll do Lupron through your entire cycle. 1 vile was all I need for an entire cycle, and I think it was $130. So don't sweat that one.  Don't freak out that a single vile says 14 day, you use less than what vile suggests, so it lasts about 1 month (the duration of your cycle) 

Your stims are what's going to be a huge PITA. I did Follistim and Menapur. The Follistim is expensive, I believe I was billed over 2k for my initial kit and I needed another one- so approx. 4k for follistim and I think the Menapur is around $75 per vile, I think I used 4 of them, but obviously this is going to depend on your meds- and I'm pretty sure when you are OOP they don't charge the same as when you have ins, so you can likely get your meds cheaper. Plus I know there are coupons available for some meds, you'll probably have to do a lot of googling once you have your med list. Shop around!! 

How about this list? https://www.freedomfertility.com/fertility-medications/medications-and-pricing.aspx You can see the Lurpon for example is listed at $99 OOP. They have several different meds listed here. 

Jen071407

Thanks lady! It's nice knowing the Lupron isn't too expensive. My insurance actually covers 50% of meds, so that's definitely a plus! Is there anything that is an indicator someone will end up needing more meds? Prob not, huh? 

pettycrocker

Yea you will know somewhat in advance. I'm pretty sure no matter what kind of primary stims you get you will get some kind of pen- the Menapur (which a lot of people end up using as a secondary) is usually a big donkey syringe, but that is besides the point here (lol) 

For ex. my Follistim came with 900 unit viles, and initially I was on something like 125u / 2x per day, so you can figure out ahead of time how long that 1 / 900 is going to last that way. You should *try* to plan on having 1 extra vile of your stims (this is really essential if the meds are ridiculously priced, but it's good to have because..................) they can randomly increase your dose, and they what would last 3 days, now only lasts 1.5 days, you know? 

Plus keep in mind with the IVF you have to do monitoring like it's your effing duty. So for me it was mostly EOD, and every time I went in, they would assess my labs vs. my stims and adjust accordingly, so it can be a constantly changing (super stressful and annoying) process lol- I say that because you never really know in more than 48hrs advance wtf you need for the next days to come!! 

~X(

pettycrocker

The good thing about the long lupron is for the first 3ish weeks, you just worry about doing the lupron 2x per day- and your baseline is after your period (which will almost definitely be late, since you start your lupron during your LP) 

And that just made me think... If you are doing IUI this cycle, I don't think you'd start your Lupron until you have another period they obviously have to wait to see if that IUI works, then you'd start the Lurpon during your LP of that cycle. So you can sort of figure out your calender that way. You start stims around week 3 of Lupron, stim for 10-14 days, trigger, retrieval, then transfer in 3-5 days unless you do a FET, then you'd freeze all and transfer the following cycle 

pettycrocker

So when do you anticipate IUI this cycle? 

Jen071407

IUI cycle will start around Dec. 20, with testing around Jan. 15. My RE mentioned something about starting BC if the IUI is a bust, and didn't say anything about starting lupron before BC...that I can remember anyway. 

pettycrocker

Jen071407 said:

IUI cycle will start around Dec. 20, with testing around Jan. 15. My RE mentioned something about starting BC if the IUI is a bust, and didn't say anything about starting lupron before BC...that I can remember anyway. 

Ok that makes sense. So if your next period started on 1/15 you'd likely start the Lurpon 3 weeks after that day, or approx. day 21, then 3 weeks after that you'd start your stims around 2-3 weeks after that, depending on how supressed you are at your baseline. Hopefully you don't have to go through any of this anyway, and that last IUI will do the trick! 

Sent you a PM!

freakyfast

Mrs Castillo said.  I am assuming you would do a fresh IVF cycle, and transfer right away? I am on BCP's now in prep for FET.  

Jen071407

freakyfast said:

Mrs Castillo said.  I am assuming you would do a fresh IVF cycle, and transfer right away? I am on BCP's now in prep for FET.  

That would be the hopeful plan. Throw in some embies to freeze and I'd be a happy camper. 

lucky7wife

I'm on Follistim and Menopur right now.  The Follistim comes in a pen, and they overfill the vials, so you actually get more than they say they contain.  It's not a little amount either.  Last night I used about 100iu overfill in my injection.  So that is a bonus.

For me, the Menopur isn't a very big needle. But it does burn a bit.  

Be prepared for the amounts to change though.  They had me on 150iu of Follistim and then after my second ultrasound they doubled it.  That means double the $ too. 

Jen071407

lucky7wife said:

I'm on Follistim and Menopur right now.  The Follistim comes in a pen, and they overfill the vials, so you actually get more than they say they contain.  It's not a little amount either.  Last night I used about 100iu overfill in my injection.  So that is a bonus.

For me, the Menopur isn't a very big needle. But it does burn a bit.  

Be prepared for the amounts to change though.  They had me on 150iu of Follistim and then after my second ultrasound they doubled it.  That means double the $ too. 

This is what I'm afraid of! Gah. Thanks for the insight, though

breeanne1974

Mrs Castillo said:

Lupron is cheap, if you're doing a long Lupron cycle (that's what it seems like) you'll do Lupron through your entire cycle. 1 vile was all I need for an entire cycle, and I think it was $130. So don't sweat that one.  Don't freak out that a single vile says 14 day, you use less than what vile suggests, so it lasts about 1 month (the duration of your cycle) 

Your stims are what's going to be a huge PITA. I did Follistim and Menapur. The Follistim is expensive, I believe I was billed over 2k for my initial kit and I needed another one- so approx. 4k for follistim and I think the Menapur is around $75 per vile, I think I used 4 of them, but obviously this is going to depend on your meds- and I'm pretty sure when you are OOP they don't charge the same as when you have ins, so you can likely get your meds cheaper. Plus I know there are coupons available for some meds, you'll probably have to do a lot of googling once you have your med list. Shop around!! 

How about this list? https://www.freedomfertility.com/fertility-medications/medications-and-pricing.aspx You can see the Lurpon for example is listed at $99 OOP. They have several different meds listed here. 

Freedom is where I got all my meds. The Gonal F/Follistim can be costly. I was on 450 every day and that was almost $900 OOP every 2 days (insurance actually charged $4900 for 3 - 900 pens towards my benefit). Even at $900, that can get pricey when you do it for 7-8 days. The Menopur is like $75 a vial and I was on 3 a day totaling 25. That gets costly. (My insurance charged $1600 towards my benefit.) Insurance is a jerk sometimes. I don't know why they don't charge the OOP rate to your insurance instead of their contracted rate as it rips you off in the end. 

The triggers and ganirelix (which is what I used instead of Lupron) are more reasonable $75-90.

Hopefully your doses will not be as high as mine and you can save some money.

Baby dust and best wishes for a successful cycle to you!