Because germinal vesicle transfer is still experimental, the procedure itself is free of charge. But patients still must pay for preliminary testing, repeated ultrasound examinations, blood tests, and fertility medications. They must pay the donor a fee for her time, for the pain and inconvenience of having to take hormone injections every night, and for undergoing general anesthesia during egg retrieval. Conventional IVF has predictable success rates, but it is not possible to know whether germinal vesicle transfer could lead to a viable pregnancy or a healthy child. The potential risks of this procedure on both the mother and the fetus are unknown.
Few people are willing or able to stake a large amount of money on an unproven procedure.
Yet only with practice will the success rate go up. So far, Dr. Zhang has carried germinal vesicle transfer to fertilization for only two women who decided to undergo the procedure despite the cost and poor chances that they will deliver a healthy child. Although neither woman became pregnant, Dr. Zhang remains unfazed and confident that after he has tried about 100 times, the success rate will be on par with that of other fertility procedures. No question about that. Dr. Zhang's technique is based on an experimental hypothesis and has not yet been either approved or shown to be successful.