Fertility Centers of New England

Danielle is optimistic but frank. She talks quickly and seems incredibly confident in how she thinks your treatment will go. While that was very reassuring at the time, it also set us up to expect thing to go well which led to extra disappointment when they didn't. She is happily willing to go over details multiple times if you need things explained again, and although she has a brusque manner we didn't in any way feel rushed.

Write down your questions in advance, so that you don't forget to ask them as things move quickly in an appointment. In our first appointment I was going to take notes, but she said I didn't need to as she'd be writing everything up. I wish I had taken notes anyway, as she talks quickly and I feel like I missed things.

After a semen analysis detected a 0 sperm count, my husband saw a urologist recommended by Danielle who diagnosed him with azoospermia, so we will be using donor sperm. We are currently researching sperm banks. Once we choose a donor, Danielle recommended two rounds of IUI, despite the low success rate, just to try before we move on to IVF if needed, for insurance and age purposes as I am almost 40.

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She was awesome. She would always call with my results and always be so positive. She was really nice and I felt very comfortable with her. She did an amazing job with balancing out my medications so our results were perfect.

Don't rush the process. There are always lots of delays

For ivf I did gonal f, menopur, and cetrotide. Then finished with a trigger shot. I don't remember dosages. But I did go in every three days for follicle scans and blood work.

All ultrasounds and blood work appointments are only available Monday through Saturday 6:30am-7:15 am. This mades appointments difficult if you have young kids but convenient if you have to work

It all depends on your insurance coverage. If your insurance covers then you will have to pay what your out of pocket for the year is. Know your coverage with your insurance and you will know your costs

She wouldn't allow me to transfer more than one. But I am ok with that because it's the greatest chance to a healthy live birth

She makes you feel at home and equal. There is no I’m better than you or prissyness because she is a doctor. She loves when we bring our miracle daughter in with us and jokes that my husband and I are just along to bring our daughter to see her. She’s straight forward tells you how it is and explains in even more detail when you ask questions. She cares about your personal life and shares some of hers as well so that y’all can create a strong trusting relationship with her. She also has an amazing sense of humor! At my past clinic we felt like a number with Dr Vitiello we don’t.

Make sure you’re open with her and don’t be afraid to ask all your questions, she will happily answer and even go into more detail if that’s what you’re looking for!

We have done 5 letrizole cycles with no monitoring dosage was 5mg x 5 days. This was done because FCNE thought it was the only thing covered through TRIcare Then we explained what they (TRIcare) would cover at a follow up/ create a new plan appointment and switched to the protocol below. We have done 4 injectable cycles with Gonal f and letrizole with monitoring 3-4 times each cycle 1st cycle 75 iu days 2-7 triggered with ovidril on day 8 2nd the same as above 3rd cycle 75 iu days 2-4 150 iu days 5-7 triggered day 8 with ovidril Cycle 4 new protocol days 2-4 150 iu all follicles under 10mm, days 5-7 225 iu day 8 to many follicles no injection day 9 cycle canceled due to 9 mature follicles ranging in size from 14-18

We have a cost share with our insurance. Each injectable cycle with monitoring costs us around $100 and then $100 for medication. We however do not have any IVF coverage.

Dr. Hill is a very bright and experienced doctor. While he explains everything, sometimes I wish he would slow down a bit to allow for better absorption of information and understanding. At times, he seems closed off to alternate treatments, but I attribute that to the fact that he's been doing this for a long time and knows what works.

Bring a notepad to take notes when Dr. Hill speaks. Sometimes he goes to fast and it feels a bit rushed.

Now that I'm over 40, we use an antagonist down regulation protocol (using Estrace and Cetrotide). Stimmimg consists of 300 gonal-F, 150 Menopur and Cetrotide. I've produced 4+ eggs with each cycle. For one cycle, we tried the Lupron microflare protocol (in an attempt to harvest more eggs). Unfortunately, that cycle ended up being cancelled because I had one lead follicle and the others failed to grow.

Monitoring is done at several satellite offices, which makes it convenient. The hours at the office I typically monitored at were 7:00-7:30 am. I am a single mom of a young child so it was sometimes hard to get there by 7:30. Also, on Sundays, you need to go to the Reading office and sometimes you would need to wait for over an hour if you needed an ultrasound. I live 45 minutes away from that office so a Sunday monitoring, it was often close to 3 hours including travel time. I dreaded Sunday monitoring.

IUI-$500 per cycle PGS- $2650 regardless of quantity of embryos being tested.

Due to my age, Dr Hill was fine with me transferring 3 embryos at a time. He explained to me that it was highly unlikely that that would result in multiple babies. He was right!

Dr Weiss was willing to adjust the protocols for each of my many IVF attempts, and to try new protocols being developed in the industry when standard ones didn't work well on me. I never felt like he was judging me (unlike my original fertility doctor at another clinic), and although I don't really care about bedside manner (caring more about results), he has a good one and seems to care about the ups and downs you go through during this process.

He has the data driven facts available, but you need to ask for them as he doesn't necessarily lead with them.

I do not remember the details of the 4 IVF protocols Dr Weiss did with me, as they were in 2014-2015, other than that he was willing to try the micro-stimulation type (aka "Japanese" protocol or that done by New Hope Clinic in NYC) when the large doses of drugs were not working well. For the two Donor Egg cycles, Dr Weiss prefers to do transfers with frozen embryos, before the transfer he has you do a round of antibiotics and take estrogen. Post transfer, he has me take both estrogen and injectable progesterone in oil - the latter until about the 10th week of pregnancy.

Don't remember details, but did like that cost for ICSI was automatically included in package as they use it frequently, instead of having it be an extra line item as was at 1st clinic.

When meeting with Dr. Vitiello, she broke down procedures and explained them with visuals and comparisons. She was very in her explanations; however, sometimes she spoke too quickly and covered a lot of information at once which was overwhelming. When performing procedures, she made me feel comfortable and relaxed. She was caring yet straightforward.

One piece of advice would be to arrive with a list of questions so you know what you want to cover when meeting with Dr. Vitiello. It is typical to only speak to the nurses once in a cycle.

I attempted three IVF cycles with Dr. Vitiello using my own eggs and my husbands sperm. We did two antagonist cycles and a microflare cycle, all with negative pregnancy results. The first cycle was very poor with one egg being retrieved and no opportunity for transfer. The subsequent two cycles were a little better. We transferred one embryo each time and neither implanted. We also used ICSI each time. After each cycle, Dr. Vitiello changed the protocol slightly in hopes of achieving success. She then recommended the use of donor eggs at which point I accepted but sought out a second opinion.

I was fortunate to have the majority of my care covered by insurance. We paid several hundred dollars for medication.

Dr Plante is very caring and compassionate. She has great bedside manners and made all the right recommendations for us during our treatments. After our first failed IVF (no transfer made due to lack of viable embryos) she called us to extend her sympathy and immediately discuss our next steps. The only negative (if that) is that I would say that Dr Plante and FCNE in general tend to make assumptions about what you know regarding the IVF process; and sometimes tend to simplify the process/injections/retrieval/transfer. I would definitely see Dr Plante again and highly recommend her to friends and family.

Ask as many questions regarding the process, risks of treatments AFTER conception. I ended up having a very difficult pregnancy that my primary ob-gyn said was most likely attributed to conceiving via IVF

Fortunately most of our treatments were covered by insurance with co-pays to see the doctor and we were responsible for all prescription costs while in cycle (probably $1,500 total for IUIs and 2 IVF) We also pay $500 annual fee for continuing to freeze our embryos.

We talked this through with Dr Plante and expressed our concern about having multiples. Given that we were diagnosed with unexplained infertility, she recommended that we try a single transfer for our first two rounds. She did say she would be comfortable with two embryos if that is what we wanted but we all agreed on a single transfer for our two rounds

We have two beautiful perfect daughters thanks to Dr Plante and her team. There were times when I felt frustrated with my treatment results and the high volume of other patients FCNE sees. It can feel like you are just a number at times. However Dr Plante herself was a pleasure to work with. She was careful and thoughtful in her explanations and alleviated a great deal of anxiety for both my partner and myself with her reassurances. What really stands out to me was our consult when we were ready to start trying to conceive our second daughter. We brought our first daughter to that appointment- our miracle baby that would not exist without Dr Plante and these incredible technologies that allowed us to beat infertility. During the visit she immediately asked to hold Olivia, sat her on her lap, kept her entertained and happy and even let her smash on her computer without a blink. She was sharing in our indescribable joy as parents in those moments- parents who feared for many long years that they would never have a child of their own. Dr Plante is a beautiful soul and I am forever grateful for the kindness and compassion she showed during these difficult years for us, along with the family she helped us build.

Ask all the questions. Write them down and bring them to your consult. Follow up with her nurses if you need to, she has a great team.

We were fortunate to be covered by insurance, but only after an uphill fight. There were still high out of pocket costs, upwards of $8k for all cycles/ genetic testing. (We are CF carriers)

We transferred only one embryo each time, as it gave us the best chances of having a healthy baby given my age, total number of viable embryos (2), and family goals. I’m grateful for Dr Plante’s advice and guidance on this choice because it gave us the family we had hoped for- 2 healthy children.

Dr. Vitiello comes across very confident and knowledgeable in her field, which is reassuring. She tends to explain things very quickly, so if you don't know what to expect or what questions to ask, you may not always get that information. She never made us feel rushed and seems to genuinely care about her patients. Her answers can be vague at times, as if she doesn't want to give too much information, probably to not cause unnecessary worry or anxiety, but this can be frustrating and leave you with even more questions down the road.

Dr. Vitiello has a way of making you smile even in the most stressful situations. She made my husband and I feel relaxed and confident, after very stressful and frustrating experiences at other clinics. While she does take the time to explain things and answer questions, she does not seem to go into a lot of detail and just gives the basics, so you may need to ask very specific questions to get the answers you are looking for.

This is one area I feel that I would have liked a little more detail. I was given a chart showing the progression of my IVF cycle, but was never really given a reason why it was specifically chosen for me or the purpose of each medication. Also, directions are given through the online portal at different steps along the way, which made me feel like I never had a clear picture of the entire process until it was over since you don't know the next step until they send it to you. This can make it difficult to fully prepare yourself mentally and emotionally for what you are about to go through.

Monitoring appointments are done during a specific timeframe in the morning and are first come, first serve. Most of the time the waiting room is full.

We did not have insurance coverage, so everything was out-of-pocket. With doctor visits, ultrasounds, blood work, IUIs, IVF, and meds around $15,000+.

Dr Hill is upfront and honest. He listened, did thorough testing, gave options and then we got going right away. Since the beginning he's been making adjusting and alterations with each cycle and hopefully we'll get it right soon. I trust his knowledge and compassion to help me and he makes me feel comfortable. The other doctors in the practice have also been great to be a patient of.

I would recommend Dr Hill & Fertility Centers of New England. Unfirtunately the whole fertility process is stressful and hard.

I was diagnosed with low ovarian reserve so Dr Hill was initially aggressive in my first IVF cycle. With only 2 mediocre embryos Dr Hill would have preferred to put them both in but unfortunately insurance only allowed 1. I miscarried at 7 weeks. We had to put in the frozen embryo next round despite Dr Hill wanting to do a fresh round and put 2 embryos in so again unfortunately insurance was holding us back. I've been diagnosed and treated for endometritis also. I'm doing aggressive stimulation now for my second IVF round, treatment for the endometritis before 2 embryos finally are transferred. I hope after the first trial, adjustments and 2 embryo transfer like we always wanted this round will have a positive outcome.

Monitoring was convenient early mornings

Insurance covered costs so just co pays for me

Dr. Hill has a warm personality, as described earlier. We didn't have a ton of interaction with him once the IVF cycle started as your care is managed by the team of doctors and nurses.

He can present a lot of information at once, which can be overwhelming, but is open to questions.

Because we had male factor infertility that could not be improved upon enough to conceive naturally, Dr. Hill let us know up front that we would need an IVF cycle with ICSI. We were lucky to get pregnant on the first try with a fresh cycle. The rest of the embryos were frozen for future use.

Ultrasounds were always done in the morning for set hours. It was first come, first serve. Since I work early I made sure to be there right when they opened. I don't remember a time that I had to wait more than a half hour.

We are lucky to live in Massachusetts, which covers fertility treatment. We've only had to pay the medication co-pays out-of-pocket. This was still a significant cost over about a month (around $500).

Dr. Vitiello is extremely smart, and a clear communicator. She explains treatments, options, and success rates clearly and openly. She is realistic, and cares about your journey, what you have put yourself through to start a family.

Do not get upset about hearing the facts. Facts are facts. Sometimes you need to hear them, and adjust your mindset to maybe take a different path than you expected to. The end result is what matters.

Antagonist - 2 cycles (1 chemical pregnancy), Long Lupron - 2 cycles (1 negative test, 1 nothing to transfer), Microflare - 4 cycles (1 pregnancy ended in miscarriage, 2 gathered for PGD, frozen transfer and negative test, 1 positive pregnancy with donor sperm, full term)

Monitoring appointments is done early in the morning - 6 - 7:30 am. It was first come, first served. Occasionally the computer system was down or the ultrasound machine wasn't working, and there were long waits. But most of the time, they moved things along. The phlebotomists and ultrasound techs were some of the nicest people I had contact with during a cycle.

My insurance plan covered fertility treatments up to $50,000. I had to pay copays for medications, and had a high deductible plan, so up to $3,000 out of pocket per year.

He talks really fast, until you know the lingo you can get lost. He is to the point, which can be a bit hard when you want more than what you got. Sometimes you just want to cling to your poor embryos

Double-check your regimens and information, it can be years between transfers, especially if successful, and they may not be reading everything. They deal with many patients, don't assume they remember you can't have a certain medication. As with any doctor, you need to be your own advocate. Don't get to caught up in what others did for their cycle but do check with Dr Hill to see if it might work well for you.

We wanted a lot of eggs because my issue leads to very few being viable. Even with my low weight, he had me take a medium dose of goal-f, my body reacted too well and he immediately adjusted my protocol to slow me down and bring my estrogen down. If my estrogen continued to skyrocket he was going to "coast" me which he explained can lead to diminished egg quality, fortunately, we did not need to coast. Instead of a day 10 egg collection, I was ready at day 9. He got a whopping 25 eggs... This led to 8 day 5, 1 compatible with life and 2 inconclusive. We agreed to let my body recover and skip the next cycle. The following cycle my lining decided to slough off mid-cycle, so we cancelled. Finally, having my body back to normal for transfer really was the best thing, my lining cooperated and we transferred. They monitored through the first few weeks then it was all my OB. I have a beautiful little boy

It was $11,800 for IVF with PGD, $2000 for medication, $3500 for the PGD probe, plus travel and hotel. Came out to $24,000, roughly, the first year. We have paid $500 each additional year to preserve our inconclusive embryos. To retest our embryos, it will be another $3500 plus lab fees. I need to ask what just a FET will cost, I am sure it is on their site. Their site is very informative. We try to take this one step at a time, after the number of miscarriages we have had you learn not to plan too far ahead. Right now we are enjoying our miracle.

We worked with Dr. Hill for our donor egg cycle. I live out of state so I have never met him in person. I sometimes felt a little rushed on the phone and wish he would of spent more time with me. I would hang up and realize I didn't get a chance to ask all of my questions.

Go prepared with questions and don't let him rush you. This is your time.

I do not remember that protocol we used for our donor. The cycle did not go so well and I was told that we should cancel the cycle but we kept going. We ended up with PGS tested embryos so I am glad we didn't stop.

His cost were reasonable compared to our first clinic. I still hope that one day insurance will help cover some costs. We were 100% out of pocket.

He recommended one embryo to be transferred and his reasons supported that decision.

Strengths - compassionate (example: called me personally after miscarriage), committed to single healthy pregnancies/values health of mother, respectful of patient's wishes (example: due to religious beliefs, unsure about pursuing IVF and Dr. Plante respects this with treatment) Weaknesses - committed to single healthy pregnancies so this makes her hesitant to get more aggressive with treatments even though my husband and I are open to multiples, doesn't schedule appointments to see you regularly, you as the patient have to make a separate appointment to see her because nurses handle all other IUI-related tasks

Be your own advocate and speak up about what you want because she really wants to avoid multiples

Letrozole 2.5mg days 2-6, monitoring via ultrasound starting day 10, trigger shot + intercourse, IUI 36 hours after trigger. She increased letrozole to 5mg on days 2-6 recently.

My insurance covers IUI so all I pay are co-pays for the IUI which are $40 and $25 to see Dr. Plante as a follow-up visit.

Dr. Hill seems very knowledgeable. He's also very busy, so you'll need to stay on top of the details of your own treatment and test results. His manner is more clinical and rushed than warm, but that doesn't bother me.

I have significantly diminished ovarian reserve for my age. Dr. Hill prescribed Letrozole.

My IUI procedure cost $500.

I really liked Beth and am planning on going back if I need additional fertility treatment. She is personable and sensitive in what is generally a highly-emotional and sometimes scary time which i greatly appreciated.

I did the monitoring appointments in Boston, so cannot comment on Reading. But in Boston, it was very efficient. There was generally a very short wait and the process moved quickly.

$5500 for retrieval plus the cost of medications (which varied depending on insurance overage)