As health journalists we keep our eyes open for new developments in the world of IVF. We bring you news on whatever may be happening which will make your fertility journey more effective and cheaper. To this end, we are excited to reveal the company which is leading the development of new technology which is about to change the way IVF is done.
‘Conceivable Life Sciences’ is harnessing artificial intelligence to improve IVF technology, designing labs with the most advanced single cell robotics in the world. The idea is to remove the element of human error and make it simpler and therefore more cost effective.
But it’s not just the cost that makes this an attractive option, but the idea that most women will have IVF that works first time – heartwarming news for fertility warriors who often have to suffer the trauma of more than six rounds of IVF to achieve their pregnancy.
We interviewed Louise Warneford who had 18 miscarriages before getting her dream pregnancy, and she said the cost was less of a strain than the physical and emotional trauma of it all and the time it took out of her life.
Who are the team making history?
The company making history was started by renowned IVF specialist, Alejandro Chavez-Badiola, who was developing the theory when he met with Joshua Abram, a veteran tech entrepreneur, and Alan Murray, who previously co-founded and served as co chairman at TMRW Life Sciences. The three realised they had something ground-breaking which could radically improve the way IVF is done, and set about raising funding to make it happen.
Guiding the Conceivable team of engineers to bring IVF into a new era is Jacques Cohen, Phd, their Chief Scientific Officer. He is often described as one of the most influential embryologists in the history of IVF. He was appointed by Robert Edwards, who won the Nobel Prize for IVF, to replace him in his lab. Jacques went on to either invent or help to pioneer many of the central features of modern IVF.
So how big is the problem of infertility?
An estimated 1 in 6 people globally are affected, according to a report from the World Health organisation. Rates of infertility – defined as not being able to conceive after a year of having unprotected sex – are similar across all countries and regions according to the WHO report.
Dr Gitau Mburu, a scientist of fertility research at WHO claims:-
“In our analysis, the global prevalence of lifetime infertility is 17.5%, translating into 1 out of every 6 people”.
However IVF is accessible to barely 1% of those worldwide who need it, with the average IVF baby in the USA costing parents around 75,000 dollars. If all intended parents were able to access IVF, 10 million more babies would be born annually rather than the present 1 million.
At the core of the problem is the current use of manual IVF lab processes which have remained largely unchanged since the birth of the first IVF child, Louise Joy Brown, over 40 years ago.
Upwards of 40% of the time, the “issues” infertile couples face also involve the male partner’s sperm. Conceivable recently submitted a paper to a peer-review journal suggesting a 20% improvement in blastocyst formation would result from using A.I. sperm selection.
Thanks to the efforts of these brilliant engineers working out of labs in Mexico, Spain and the UK, Conceivable has already achieved it’s first pregnancy using it’s fully automated andrology process, where the best sperm is selected at the touch of a button.
Real Change is coming soon
Conceivable executives state that real change is coming soon, and we will see “IVF for all people not just the wealthy people”.
By automating the IVF lab, Conceivable also hopes to encourage a different culture of payment, with gynaecologists charging a flat fee of 15K per IVF transfer, and a “NoBabyNoFEE” system. A similar style is already in use by leading clinics but doesn’t include meds and scans or offer the safety net of success after one go.
So how does this compare to other IVF clinics?
Bourn Hall in the UK who have six clinics across East Anglia, was the first IVF clinic in the world and their history, approach and innovation continue to deliver that vision through healthy success rates. If you are under 35 years old their live birth rate after one IVF cycle is 60 percent. They charge 12,000 for an unlimited number of sessions over two years, and if you’re not pregnant you get a 100% refund.
Impressive stuff but unfortunately on top of this fee are the costs of screenings and medication, which would nearly double this original quote if you expect at least two ivf cycles. If you’re over 35 their success rates drop, so you can expect a corresponding increase in costs.
Conceivable technology will also use leading cell automation
This ground-breaking work will seamlessly incorporate proven technologies from the realm of cell therapy and cell automation ensuring over 90 percent success rates.
To safeguard these remarkable innovations, they’ve wasted no time in filing the most extensive patent applications in IVF history.
As Stephanie Kuku, @drstephkuku MD, their VP, Scientific Affairs says:-
“Having a baby should be the most simple, natural, fun thing to do.”
Thanks to the team at Conceivable, this is now set to become a reality in the foreseeable future.
Excited? You should be…..we certainly are. Watch this space…..
