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The American Fertility Association’s Monthly Newsletter

July 23, 2008

LOCAL VOICES ISSUES ON ABROAD

Infertility Vaccine for the Man

Contraception for women has always been a bit more challenging than it is for men. While women are required to take birth control pills every day or get a tubectomy. Men, you’re lucky, all you have to do is wear a condom.

But, fair’s fair, right? MSNBC reports scientists at Mumbai’s National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health have developed a contraceptive vaccine for men, which would be administered by a shot once every three months.

"It is a protein called 80 Kilo Dalton Human Sperm Antigen or 80 KDHSA and produces temporary infertility,” says scientist, Dr. A Bandivdekar.

Not only does the vaccine level the playing field for men and women, it’s also more reliable than a condom. The vaccine is made from a molecule in sperm which produces temporary infertility, unlike a vasectomy which is irreversible. And the withdrawal method? Well, that’s not only difficult, but also unreliable.

The new vaccine is being tested on rabbits and monkeys. The human trials are expected to begin in a couple of years.

One major downfall, the vaccine is only a contraceptive and does not protect against HIV and other STDs.

AFA Board Member, Dr. Alan Penzias says this is, “interesting. Any time another tool is available to help people control their fertility, it’s good. The issue about disease prevention is real and speaks more to personal responsibility.”

$200 for In Vitro

In vitro often depletes savings, 401K’s, and racks up the debt on those credit cards, costing you thousands of dollars. But, in vitro costing hundreds of dollars is on the way.

In Africa, it’s estimated 30 percent of the women are infertile. One in three women is unable to have children. The issue goes beyond Africa. An estimated 80 million people worldwide in developing countries are infertile.

A task force at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology is looking into infertility in those countries. A small number of women have already been treated in Khartoum, Sudan with a $200 in vitro process, and other projects are expected to start soon in South Africa and Tanzania.

Penzias says, “$200 is a provocative number compared to $10,000. That number may be what the Task Force would see charging the prospective patients.”

Penzias warns, however, “The technical expertise needed to perform the monitoring, egg collection, embryo assessment and embryo transfer far exceeds that number. If this were subsidized by WHO, another NGO or government organization, then what is charged to the patient is irrelevant.”

Dr. Alan S. Penzias

Dr. Alan S. Penzias, the Surgical Director of the Surgery Center of Waltham, a division of Boston IVF, has been in practice for more tahn 15 years. Board Certified in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Dr. Penzias received his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and his medical degree from SUNY – Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY. He completed his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital/Harvard Medical School, and his fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Yale University School of Medicine.

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