Dr Richard Fisher would welcome an 'army' of gay donors A leading fertility expert says it's harder to find donors who are willing to allow their sperm to be used by lesbian couples, and his team would be delighted if there was a rush on gay men willing to help out with the situation. "Most men who present as donors present with an idea that they are going to be donating to couples in heterosexual relationships because that is what they know," explains clinician Dr Richard Fisher from Fertility Associates, who introduced IVF into New Zealand in the early 1980s. Dr Fisher says commonly sperm donors are in partnerships themselves and are looking for ways in which they can assist couples who are in strife with their fertility. "It is not, however, that uncommon for men to offer donations to gay or single women after they have had these options discussed with them," he says. "It is a question we ask as we are firmly of the view that they are offering a gift and it is allowed to be a gift with strings attached. With the law now requiring donors to be identified in time, we want comfort for both donors and recipients and for both of them to be well informed about issues." Dr Fisher says Fertility Associates has a large number of requests for donor insemination from gay couples and currently around 60 per cent of its donor programme are either gay couples or single women. "We would be delighted if an army of gay men decided to donate," Dr Fisher responded when the idea was put forward by GayNZ.com Daily News. He explains donation requires interview with a doctor following an initial semen analysis to make sure that sperm is suitable for freezing and thawing apart from its biological potential. "We also ask donors to discuss the issues surrounding gamete donation with our counsellors and they need blood tests prior and three months after donation to ensure that we are aware whether or not they are Hepatitis B/Hepatitis C/HIV positive." You can discuss this gay New Zealand news story on the GayNZ.com forum
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 23rd September 2011 - 5:18pm