Spring Fertility

Dr. Fisher was the second reproductive endocrinologist I treated with over the course of about a year. I came to him very disheartened by my prior experience - both in the results and the relationship with my prior clinic and provider. Dr. Fisher was very different in every aspect from my prior experience. From the initial visit, he went through different protocols we could try during this egg retrieval to see if we could get better results, he took significant time explaining his thinking, he spent an enormous amount of time explaining medicine to me and assuring me when I was nervous. Dr. Fisher truly cares about his patients, I have not encountered this kind of care routinely and I will always be appreciative.

Don't be afraid to ask questions, Dr. Fisher will take the time to explain until you understand.

Mid-luteal protocol. Apparently Spring has had a lot of success with this protocol, I had not heard of it prior to my treatment at this clinic, and I have to say, I am very happy with it. At the prior clinic I treated with, I underwent the antagonist protocol and the same amount of eggs were retrieved as at Spring (in the 20s). But the prior clinic, I only ended up with one embryo after PGS testing (3 were tested but only one was euploid. At Spring, 8 embryos made it to day 5 and of those, five were euploid.

All of my costs were unfortunately out-of-pocket as Spring does not accept United Healthcare. For the retrieval, it was approximately $18,000. For transfer, approximately $5-$6,000.

Dr. Fisher strongly recommended single embryo transfer and I agreed.

Dr. Minjarez treated me differently than the other fertility doctors I had seen. I was exhausted with misinformation and feeling like none of the doctors I met with were fully in control of a plan toward success. However, Dr. Minjarez was direct in her communication and let me know what challenges were ahead and she did it compassionately. Kaiser has sent over 450 pages of my medical records and I assumed it would be too much to read through so I came to the appointment with a timeline. When I met with Dr. Minjarez she knew everything I’d been through and already had a tailored plan. The major part of feeling confident and secure with Dr. Minjarez is that she was open to hearing my questions, thoroughly explained things, and if I had a specific request she was open to it. Many of the doctors I’d had before treated my journey as an experiment I.E. sure, I have no idea if that will work so let’s try it. That’s never comforting. As a queer female couple, every time we tried to get pregnant was costly financially and emotionally. Dr. Minjarez was the only doctor that understood that balance and knew that we didn’t have time or money to waste. Lastly, Dr. Minjarez treats you based on your cycle - the clinic didn’t make me take medications in order to fill their schedule. So when my body was ready they were able to always accommodate.

If you have any doubts or questions make sure to always ask them before you leave the appointment. She is busy but always has time to explain and answer things.

Because I’d already had an extensive journey with medication, Dr. Minjarez was able to tailor my injections and quantities based off my history. Surprisingly, she didn’t prescribe the highest amount of injections that I’d used before. Instead she explained to me that I didn’t need as much as I’d had before (that doctor had really amped up the meds) in order to produce. When I had my transfer she prescribed clomid. Previously I’d had a weird reaction to clomid (Rx from the same doctor that had rx’ed high amounts of injections) and Dr. Minjarez walked me through trying it again at a different dosage and taking them at night. She let me know that I could change the meds if I needed to. She was right and I didn’t have a negative reaction when I took them. After I had the embryo transfer I was able to just have progesterone suppositories instead of injecting. This is uncommon with the other doctors I’d met with and I was so thankful that Dr. Minjarez knew the up to date science and confirmed that my numbers were high enough for suppositories. Most other doctors just automatically prescribe progesterone injections no matter what.

We did ICSI, genetic testing and frozen transfer with one embryo. Overall with medications we paid between $25-30k. Our insurance didn’t cover anything.

We preferred single embryo transfer and Dr. Minjarez agreed. We did PGS testing and ICSI to have the best chances of only needing the eSET. This was recommended by Dr. Minjarez and we were happy with the results.

After having an awkward time at Kaiser's IVF clinic, working with Dr. Minjarez was a pleasure. She is friendly and informative. She made me feel empowered which I believe contributed to the success of our transfer.

Ask questions, no matter how dumb. Don't be afraid to share your experience with her. She took us on with an intensity we needed to feel like IVF would work for us. Her confidence is infectious.

Due to my husband's infertility, we did ICSI and PGT.

Because we did the PGT we only transferred one egg. Very happy with that decision.

Dr. Harris was relatable and easy to talk to; in the few visits where my husband joined me, he provided a place that was comfortable for a man going through this process. He was very clear on his thoughts on IUI vs. IVF up front but mentally, I wasn't ready to go straight to IVF w/o trying IUI. He respected my decision and supported me. He is very optimistic and always tells me everything "looks great" which is ironic because I feel like I'd be pregnant already if everything was truly "great". As I experienced set backs, one being a lab error (scheduled for the wrong day for my FET), Dr. Harris accepted accountability but was pretty dismissive of my emotional state and just kept saying he has faith I will eventually be a mom despite acknowledging the IVF fatigue I was experiencing. He also provided a "pregnancy guarantee" which never came into fruition under his care so it felt a bit like an empty promise.

Take advantage of the time you have with him and ask a lot of questions. During each treatment I would ask him the questions I had instead of trying to schedule calls thru the clinic. But if I needed to do calls through the clinic, I'd do that. Do not always depend on the nurse being your "middle man". He's a great doctor but I cannot recommend the clinic in good faith. They don't care about their patients in the way you deserve to be cared for.

I have "unexplained infertility", before trying I visited him to get the full work up to ensure my reproductive system was working as expected. However, I never had a HSG which I feel like is odd for someone who was doing IUI. I came to Dr. Harris for my first IUI, which I did during a Letrozole cycle. He was supportive but said I'd have better success with IVF. After the second failed IUI (chemical pregnancy), I begun IVF, so in a way I feel like he was right all along but it took me awhile to get there emotionally/mentally. IVF hasn't been as much of a "sure bet" as he explained it would be.

Spring is a Fertility Factory, sometimes they get it right and thats sheer luck but mostly they don't.

100% covered by Progyny insurance after meeting my insurance deductible

I wouldn't mind twins but Dr. Harris said he would only transfer one embryo at my age.

Dr. Harris is super nice. He is also very experienced and sharp. He has a compassionate nature and a good sense of humor. He also helped someone else I know and she said he was amazing with her as well through a long IVF journey.

I think choosing a doctor is personal so you might want to do a consultation with a couple of doctors and then choose which one you felt best with. If you work with Dr. Harris or any doctor I'd say make sure to do some research on IVF so that you can know what questions to ask. Write down your questions and don't hesitate to ask them to your doctor and nurses.

First cycle we did a follicular protocol with Aygestin and ten days of Gonal and Menopur with great results. Second cycle we did a midluteal protocol where you start 5 days after ovulation and twelve days of Gonal and Menopur with even better results. The doctor said he wished he could take credit but there is some randomness in how many follicles your body has each month so unclear how much the protocol helped but I was very happy he could make adjustments based on my first cycle to create a better second cycle and that he was humble about it and how well it worked.

He is friendly but don't explain why the protocol, and I felt is a default protocol to everyone. Even sent medication by nurse per email without any explanation why should I take the pills. During the ultrasound never said anything I need ask all the time about the sizes and is the medicine was working well.

He is friendly, but very busy

He just does single embryo transfer

We couldn't be happier as patients of Dr Tran. We saw him at Spring in 2018 when the clinic was still growing and again at the end of 2019 when the clinic had grown exponentially but we experienced the same level of care from Dr Tran. What we appreciated the most was Dr Tran's direct, confident and no fluff demeanor. Often times, he was more confident in a positive outcome than we were which is what I would want with my fertility doctor. We did experience 1 miscarriage with an IUI cycle which Dr Tran showed a nice balance of compassion and yet still a focus on the path forward.

If you want a fertility doctor who is going to hold your hand, provide some fluffiness to your consults and consultations with a pair of rosy glasses on, this is not the doctor for you. If you want a personalized, down to business, direct and a results driven outcome, then Dr Tran is who you'd want to see.

Walking into the clinic, I thought for sure we would be doing IVF but after our consultation, ultrasound and fertility vitals, Dr Tran recommended that we start with IUI first since the more %s of increase in chances of being pregnant with IVF vs IUI wasn't worth the exponential extra cost of IVF. For our first treatment cycle, we did two rounds of IUIs. The first round resulted in a miscarriage at 5.5 weeks and the second round results in my now healthy toddler. For our second treatment cycle which was 10 months after giving birth, we did two rounds of IUI. The first round didn't take and the second round resulted in twins which I am currently in the third trimester of.

The initial consult was out of pocket which was reasonable. My first two IUI cycles were covered by work and we paid out of pocket for the 2nd two IUI cycles which we found was reasonable as well.

My experience with Dr. Klatsky in 2018 for the egg retrieval was flawless. He kept me updated and educated on why he was doing particular procedures or prescribing medications and was very empathetic to all of the side effects throughout the process. When I came back in for the embryo transfer in 2020, I felt more disconnected. He relies heavily on his IVF nurse lead (who was great) to keep track of medications and cycle stages. There was one appointment i particular that he wasn't aware of what medications I was currently taking and he made recommendations to change medication and move up the cycle. I then received an email from his nurse later that day stating to not make the changes the Dr. had recommended, because he was not aware of exactly what meds I was on and to keep things as originally scheduled. Dr. Klatsky did follow up after our failed embryo transfer, answered all of our questions and was very empathetic and apologetic about the miscommunication that had occured throughout the FET cycle. He discussed in depth the plan for our next FET and why we would take that approach and it has been scheduled to happen within the next two months.

The advice that I would give to a prospective patient of Peter Klatsky is to make sure you ask a lot of questions and don't hesitate to request for a follow up phone call if more information is needed or questions need to be answered after an appointment or consultation.

My husband and I had been trying for over a year to get pregnant before we came into the clinic. Dr. Klatsky preformed a saline sonogram, and HSG, an ultrasound and ordered blood work for both my husband and I. He then diagnosed me with Unexplained Infertility saying that all of the tests came out clear. He also took into account the results of my husbands sperm sample that we had previously had done. He recommended IVF, stating that IUI has less chances of working to get us pregnant. We went with his recommendation and started IVF asap. We did a retrieval under his care and did pgs testing at his recommendation to prevent miscarriage or failed FETs. We then did a medicated FET that was not successful. Dr. Klatsky recommended a medicated FET (with intramuscular progesterone shots and estrogen patches), because during the retrieval he stated that my lining was pretty thin and that the medicated protocol would rule out the lining being a factor. Dr. Klatsky, as well as my husband and I were all pretty surprised when the first round didn't work, since everything went well, lining looked good and the embryo was a "perfect" 5AA. After following up after the transfer, Dr. Klatsky has changed his approach for our next FET to a natural transfer, as I reminded him of my history of pelvic tension issues, interstitial cystitis and spotting. He wants to make sure that endometriosis isn't a factor, although I don't have many of the symptoms and he has done the majority of non- invasive tests to rule it out. Just in case I do have it he does not want to give me estrogen for the next cycle, which causes endo to flare. It will be a risk because there is a chance my lining may not be thick enough on transfer day, but he thinks it is best to try something different than last time to rule out endometriosis or any other factors that may be preventing us from getting pregnant.

I believe the IVF retrieval was around 12,000-15,000. The FET with consultation, tests, monitoring and transfer was 5,100.

Dr. Klatsky recommended against putting in multiple embryos at my age (33) and with my diagnosis (unexplained infertility) as it could cause a high risk pregnancy (multiples). I don't even think the clinic allows people to ask for multiple transfers at my age or with my diagnosis, but I am sure there are certain exceptions that they may do so. We allowed the clinic to pick the best out of our 3 pgs tested embryos and asked for the gender to be confidential and not shared with us.

Dr. Harris was relatable and easy to talk to; in the few visits where my husband joined me, he provided a place that was comfortable for a man going through this process. He was very clear on his thoughts on IUI vs. IVF up front but mentally, I wasn't ready to go straight to IVF w/o trying IUI. He respected my decision and supported me. He is very optimistic and always tells me everything "looks great" which is ironic because I feel like I'd be pregnant already if everything was truly "great". As I experienced set backs, one being a lab error (scheduled for the wrong day for my FET), Dr. Harris accepted accountability but was pretty dismissive of my emotional state and just kept saying he has faith I will eventually be a mom despite acknowledging the IVF fatigue I was experiencing.

Take advantage of the time you have with him and ask a lot of questions. During each treatment I would ask him the questions I had instead of trying to schedule calls thru the clinic. But if I needed to do calls through the clinic, I'd do that. Do not always depend on the nurse being your "middle man".

I have "unexplained infertility", before trying I visited him to get the full work up to ensure my reproductive system was working as expected. However, I never had a HSG which I feel like is odd for someone who was doing IUI. I came to Dr. Harris for my first IUI, which I did during a Letrozole cycle. He was supportive but said I'd have better success with IVF. After the second failed IUI (chemical pregnancy), I begun IVF, so in a way I feel like he was right all along but it took me awhile to get there emotionally/mentally. IVF hasn't been as much of a "sure bet" as he explained it would be but I am maneuvering through the process in hopes of his optimism turning into a baby.

100% covered by Progyny insurance after meeting my insurance deductible

I wouldn't mind twins but Dr. Harris said he would only transfer one embryo at my age.

When we first met with Dr. Tran for a consultation, he was very efficient but thorough. He explained our options in a straightforward manner. We received a lot of information that first visit, but we had a fairly clear sense of our path forward, though the question of timing was still a little hard to grasp. We were able to proceed with treatment relatively quickly, and I always felt like I was in good hands with Dr. Tran. I appreciated that I saw him on most visits and that he handled my procedures himself. We had one minor confusion when he told us he thought we could do a transfer before the end of the year, when really January was the actual outcome because of holiday closures, but while that felt frustrating at the time, I'm glad we did the transfer at a time when we could have full access to Dr. Tran and the clinic. On the day of the retrieval, he did a great job putting me at ease, joking about the music playing in the procedure room. We got some bad news after my retrieval - only 2 embryos made it to day 6 out of the original 18 - and Dr. Tran explained that it might be due to the quality of my eggs over the phone. I think that information would have been a little easier to take in person, but I appreciate that he was able to take the time to talk to us about it. While things sometimes felt like they moved quickly with Dr. Tran, I know he's a very experienced doctor with a great track record, so I feel grateful we were able to work with him.

Don't be afraid to ask questions if you have any. Dr. Tran will make time to answer them if he knows you have them.

My partner was diagnosed with male factor infertility before coming to Dr. Tran. We were told IVF with ICSI was our best option by the reproductive endocrinologist we had gotten testing with at Kaiser. Dr. Tran reviewed our results and agreed that IVF with ICSI was our best path forward. Because my results were all within standard range, he said our chances were relatively high, comparatively -- about 60% chance of conception per cycle. I was put on Menopur and Gonal-F to prepare for the retrieval, and we were able to stay the course without making changes to the protocol as the eggs were progressing as expected. I did the trigger injections 36 hours before the procedure, and came in for the retrieval, which resulted in 19 eggs, 18 of which made it to the embryo state. We used ICSI and they grew the embryos to day 6. Only two made it to day 6, both of which we chose to send for PGS testing. One came back as normal, the other was "inconclusive." We would have been allowed to either re-test the inconclusive embryo or transfer it without further testing. When the clinic reopened after the holidays, I went on birth control for about two weeks before starting medication (Letrozole then Medrol) to prepare for the transfer. I was not put on progesterone after bloodwork showed I had appropriate levels. I was given Valium to take the day of the transfer, and no further medication after that. I got a positive HCG result about two and half weeks after the transfer and am currently 14 weeks pregnant.

Dr. Tran strongly recommended single embryo transfer, and given my age and the risks, I was happy with this approach.

Dr. Tran was always honest about our odds of conceiving. He was hopeful that it could work, but didn't offer false hope which I appreciated. He was good at explaining what he was doing and why. He seemed to have a good balance between using evidence-based methods and a willingness to try something else when that didn't work. He is fairly technical and clinical, but I think that's what you want: someone precise and exacting. In the end, we trusted him and when he was optimistic that a second round could yield better results than our first, we agreed. And he was right! Our second round was successful.

Don't expect someone who is touchy-feely. Ask good questions, he's happy to explain things. Trust that his number one goal is to help you conceive and he'll do what he can to make that happen.

Round one: started with lupron then was on 150 menopur, 225 gonal f for 4 days, then 150 of each for 4 days, then 75 menopur/150 gonal f for 1 day. Produced 14 follicles, 9 embryos, all poor quality by day 3. Transferred the best 3 on day 3, resulted in a chemical pregnancy with nothing left to freeze. Round 2: started on Aygestin then was on 150 each menopur and gonal f for 8 days, then 75 menopur/150 gonal f for 3 days, then 75 of each for last day. Also took HGH throughout. Began cetrotide last 4 days. This time he also cultured our embryos differently. This time retrieved 10, had 9 embryos. 3 very good ones and a handful of ok ones. None made it to freeze. Transferred 3 on day three resulted in twins.

Dr. Tran felt strongly that we should transfer 3 based on my age and egg quality.

I saw Dr. Pasternak about 3 times while I was at Spring. 2 times for appointments to monitor my IVF cycle (where she just measured my lining an counted number of eggs). She performed those competently. However, her weakness was, as I've stated in the embryo transfer. Dr. Pasternak has not been practicing for many years, and I suspect that her ego was committed to finishing the embryo transfer at all costs, rather than thinking about me as a patient or my future child. If she had, she would have stopped when she was having difficulty after 5 minutes (not 30/while/ I was in massive pain), obtained her supervisor, and explained that she had spent 30 minutes in my uterus, so that implantation would have been impossible. She would have explained that implantation was impossible and that I had the option to refreeze my embryo, and try again. She did none of those things. She simply continued to cause blood to enter my uterus, causing me to lose a 5AA embryo at age 43.

think Dr. Pasternak is fine for basic monitoring of lining and counting of eggs for IVF, becuase she doesn't make any decisions there. She just reports the information to the supervisor/doctor you have hired and they instruct on next steps. However, I would not let her touch you for an egg retrieval, an IUI, or an embryo transfer. From my experience, she can't take responsibility when she makes errors. To err is human, but to continue to err and jeapordize a patient once a Doctor realizes harm is antithetical to the Hippocrates oath of "Do no harm."

1 as I had a PGT tested embryo of the highest possible quality

Dr. Klatsky is warm and meets each patient where they are. E.g., early on I wanted to leave most things up to him, but as we progressed I got more involved in the data. He is warm and compassionate, and has a quirky sense of humor.

Come armed with knowledge, or as you are - he will be candid and forthright.

Mid-luteal cycle start for my second cycle as I responded poorly at the first retrieval.

It’s all covered by my company’s insurance.

N/A; haven’t transferred yet

I absolutely loved Dr. Tran. He was super straightforward, answered all my questions and beyond, and performed all procedures skillfully. He was also very respectful of me and my partner at every opportunity. It is a pretty rare situation that I leave a serious conversation with a doctor feeling pretty good about everything - even if the answer isn't necessarily what i wanted - but somehow he managed to make that happen.

I spend a lot of my time dealing with healthcare advocacy for others, so Dr. Tran's bluntness was a big positive. But if that's not working for you, I would highly recommend Dr. Harris, who I think was my favorite for bedside manner out of all the doctors at Spring that I saw in brief.

I had failed multiple IUI cycles elsewhere already. Based on my ethnicity and a combination of PCOS and unexplained infertility, and with some other considerations (like limited sperm vials to work with) I was recommended an antagonist protocol for a freeze-all cycle and FET. We opted for PGS just because we could. We ended up having to adjust medications downwards because I was responding too well. Got more of everything than estimated - eggs, fertilized #, day 3, day 5/6. FET was a letrozole-assisted cycle and succeeded on the first try.

18k for stimulation/retrieval including icsi and pgs. around 4k for medications. 4500-5000 for FET. then $950 for saline sono and $450 for the last appointment to confirm pregnancy before graduating to my regular OB.

He had a VERY, very, very, very strong preference for eSET due to my age and PGS-tested AA grade embryos.

The proof is in the pudding. I'm a 42-year old woman, using my own eggs and husband's sperm, and am currently 20-weeks pregnant after a single embryo transfer! Dr. Tran is matter-of-fact and VERY data-based meaning he doesn't waste time with frivolous treatment without proven efficacy. After two failed transfers in LA, my doctor there had me going down rabbit holes. Not so with Dr. Tran! He reads all of the studies so you don't have to. At the same time Dr. Tran really, really cares about your outcomes. I have video of Dr. Tran in our first ultrasound, grinning from ear-to-ear. As we're all first laying eyes on our baby to be, Dr. Tran is ecstatically exclaiming "you've got a one good one!"

Don't be afraid to ask questions and be open to data-based answers. Like I said, he's not going to waste your time with un-substantiated rabbit holes.

The one key decision, which was different from my past (unsuccessful) transfers with my 1st doctor: unmedicated transfer cycle, using my own body's natural cycle to guide transfer timing. I believe that made all the difference in my outcome! That meant that the stuff I had to do before my other (unsuccessful) transfers - endometrial scratch, ERA testing, daily injections with progesterone treatments - were not necessary.

We chose eSET because of my risk factors: age and two previous ectopic pregnancies. That was absolutely the right thought process and decision!

Dr. Tran is an intelligent, competent doctor, but there's a lack of emotional IQ to balance his intellectual IQ. Infertility is an emotional journey, and we look to our doctors for support. Many times during my care I felt like he didn't have enough capacity for me, and he was taking on too many patients. In the worst of times, I felt abandoned by him as my doctor. He is present at appointments, but his time is rushed. Appointments have become difficult to schedule due to his split time between Redwood City and SF offices, and I have even had major procedures rescheduled last minute to accommodate his busy schedule.

Get to know your nurse, because Dr. Tran will not be available to you beyond your appointments. Be direct in your questions. Don't let yourself get rushed, or brushed off - speak up for yourself. You may need to ask questions multiple times to get the answer you need. Find a good therapist to help with the emotional stuff - you will need it.

I found Dr. Tran to be very conservative in his approach vs. other docs, which may be due to his background at UCSF (teaching hospital). He will not perform an ERA, or other new procedures, unless they have tons of data back them up. He won't order blood-tests or recommend aggressive treatments unless absolutely necessary. He isn't super proactive - which may be partially due to his lack of time. If you're looking for a doc that will be extremely thorough, and give you all the bells and whistles, he many not be the doc for you.

We had some insurance coverage, but about $46-50k for retrieval, $6k for transfer, $800 for meds

I wasn't given an option - single embryo transfers only

What I mostly appreciated about Dr. Tran was his willingness to listen and adjust the treatment as new information came in and we wanted a change in direction. I think there's a lot of ego in this field and his flexibility was refreshing. He is very keep on the mid-luteal protocol. At the beginning he was reluctant to share what approach he'd take, stating that he doesn't care what the protocol is called, but whether it is appropriate for us, but ultimately took the approach he seems to be known for. We experienced a setback with unusually high drop in embryos in the lab (b/n D3 and D5/6). He was upfront about how unexpected that result was and presented a solution, without throwing the stats based on my age in my face, which I appreciated. Ultimately, we didn't get to an embryo transfer with him. He very candidly shared his opinion that our embryos had a better chance in my uterus, which is what we came to realize, and showed that he had our interest at heart. This is not where the clinic makes money, so he won my full trust with this recommendation.

Be prepared with a list of questions to get the most out of your visits with Dr. Tran. We had most of our monitoring visits with him personally, but they're routine in nature and quick, so I found myself following up with the nurses with follow-up questions I didn't get to or didn't think of during the visits.

We had to IVF cycles with mid-luteal protocol, with moderate to low doses. I had 8-9 follicles at baseline, and given that there wasn't much potential beyond that, it was important for me to not get overly medicated (some other fertility doctors we consulted with in our research mentioned "aggressive" protocol, which was a big turnoff). Dr. Tran took a moderate approach and adjusted down given my good response in the first cycle. The meds were 225 IU Gonal-F and 150 IU Menopur. Great response initially - of 8 follicles we retrieved 8 mature eggs, 7 fertilized with ICSI. Second time less so - of 9 follicles, we retrieved 4 and only 2 mature eggs which were fertilized. "0" embryos at Day 5/6, however, and the whole reason we did IVF was the genetic test at D5/6 so we can minimize the risk miscarriage. The mid-luteal protocol didn't allow for a Day 3 transfer. Seems like our embryos can't make it beyond that in lab environment.

We went through insurance as we had some coverage (with a lifetime max). Still unsure of the total out-of-pocket costs for either cycle due to the messy billing. Dealing with the billing department at Spring was the most stressful and painful experience, an unwelcome one too given how taxing the IVF process already is. Inquires required multiple follow-ups before Spring would respond (sometimes 2-3 weeks later). They simple didn't address/ignored some direct questions. Last but not least, they said they'd do the billing in a certain way for our second cycle, but didn't do so despite the agreement we had reached on that. Super frustrating experience, and I am still entangled in this two months after treatment.

eSET was the considered approach but we didn't have a single embryo for transfer.

Dr. Klatsky is optimistic but also realistic. He’ll explain everything in detail if you ask him to. I came prepared with a list of questions at the consultation and he answered all of them with patience. My ultrasound appointments were smooth, I appreciated his positivity.

Come prepared with questions! You’re your own advocate.

We did an IUI cycle with letrozole and trigger shot. I asked for letrozole over clomid because I had researched that it had fewer side effects.

Each IUI is about $1600. Letrozole and trigger shot about $100ish.

Dr. Minjarez clearly cares about her patients. She takes the time to hear about your fertility journey in your own words, but has also clearly taken the time to review the information you provide in your intake forms. I think she takes all steps necessary to achieve pregnancy.

Ask questions. And ask what she would ask if she were in your shoes. Know that the fertility journey is not linear.

I had a saline sonogram to look for scarring in the uterus. Then had a hysteroscopy to remove the scarring. And now am on estrogen, and then will the provera toward the end of the estrogen.

Saline sonogram was around $700. Hysteroscopy with anesthesia was around $3500. Initial office consult was around $350.

Dr. Minjarez has a strong preference on eSET, due to all of the risks for mom and babies if there are multiples.

Dr. Minjarez took time to thoroughly explain different parts of the process and answer any of our questions. We've had some delays getting started, and she's been helpful and responsive. She does a good job of balancing clear, direct communication with kindness and the feeling like she's rooting for us.

Make sure you think through your questions ahead of time -- it really benefit us to have done our research so we could make the most of our time with Dr. Minjarez. Appointments can be brief, but her team is always very responsive via email if things come up afterward.

We haven't started stimulation yet, because my follicles weren't ready. But the plan is to stimulate with FSH and Menopur.

saline sonogram: $950 ovarian stimulation and monitoring, retrieval of oocytes, embryology lab services (including ICSI, PGS/PGD): $18,375 medication package: $4,400 future frozen embryo transfer (monitoring + thawing, transfer): $5,250 embryo cryopreservation after 6 months: $650

This facility transfers only one embryo at a time.

At the beginning there was some miscommunication, but when I expressed my concern Dr. Harris was apologetic and made up for the initial misunderstanding. He truly wants to see his patients succeed and does what he can to that end. He was always sure to ask at each visit how things are going, whether you have experienced any side effects, etc. He explains the options clearly, and is thorough in describing the treatment plan.

Dr. Harris is openly optimistic and enthusiastic, and the result is that you can get swept into the optimism and expect more from your treatment than it can realistically deliver. The result is that a failure can hit harder than it might have otherwise. I'm ultimately happy with our choice of doctor, but just be realistic with yourself,

We used Clomid with an Ovidrel trigger shot followed by IUI three times. We have just started our first IVF cycle with Dr. Harris. Given our severe male factor infertility, he originally suggested we skip IUI and go directly to IVF, but that was not financially feasible for us at the time so we attempted IUI anyway despite the probable negative outcome. The first IUI cycle I had some spotting pre-period, which is unusual for me, and a positive pregnancy test long after the Ovidrel should have dissipated so we suspect the possibility of a chemical pregnancy. Dr. Harris was thorough with his description of the different approaches we could take with IVF and explained clearly why he felt the approach we went with was best for us. We're using birth control for 2 weeks followed by injectables for egg retrieval at the end of the month.

The self-pay cost for IUI is $1600 and it's $18,375 for IVF. With insurance, we paid ~$600 for the first two IUI cycles and nothing for the second as we'd hit our max out of pocket. IVF is going to cost around $3000 and most of that is the out-of-network surgical center. I don't yet know what additional there will be on top of that for the genetic testing, anesthesiologist, etc.

We didn't discuss this as I had decided in advance that I wanted to do single embryo transfer.

I have only ever seen Dr. Tram in person once, at my initial consult. My IUIs were done by different doctors, and all other information has been conveyed through nurses and my patient coordinator. However I feel like I’m getting the care I need, and if I move on to IVF, I believe I will see him more.

His primary focus is IVF, so if you are starting with IUI, you might not see him for many of your appointments. However he will still be involved in your care, and it’s easy to get answers to questions via your patient coordinator.

I am early 30s with good stats, and his strategy was 3 unmedicated IUIs, then (if no pregnancy) 3 medicated IUIs, then potentially move on to IVF. I have had three unsuccessful IUIs. I am now going to have an HSG test. I elected not to have one before beginning initial treatment, but now that I have had 3 unsuccessful IUIs, Dr. Tran thinks I should do one before beginning the more involved and expensive process of medicated IUIs. Depending on the results of the HSG test, I will either move on to the planned medicated cycles, or look at IVF.

Monitoring ultrasounds—$400 IUI— Around $800

From a scientific and IVF protocol I completely trust Dr. Tran and his decisions. He is very accurate in his assessments and his protocol is always adjusted and designed to fit my individual needs. He is straightforward and sets realistic expectations which is exactly what you need in this process so you are not giving an unrealistic sense of hope; with this approach it can lack a little bit of warmth in his messages but in the end you leave his office with a real sense of understanding for the future.

Be patient with the process and trust Dr. Trans decisions as he shares the same desired outcome.

I did two retrievals using Lupron, Gonal-F, Menopur, Cetrotide and Novarel. Both retrievals resulted in a desirable amount of eggs; my particular problem is in growing the embryos to day 5. The number of embroys drastically dropped during this time. First retrieval results in 2 embryos that both came back normal after genetic testing. The second retrieval resulted in 1 embryo that came back abnormal. I then did a FET immediately following the second retrieval that resulted in a healthy pregnancy. I did a second transfer Sept 2019 with the remaining embryo from first retrieval that did not result in a pregnancy. I am currently undergoing preparation for another retrieval.