Fresh Egg Donation vs. Frozen Egg Banking: How Substance and Race Interact in Reproductive Bioeconomies

• In Event: Capitalizing Fertility: Feminist STS Approaches to Reproductive Bioeconomies - I

Abstract

Until recently, intended parents and medical practitioners preferred fresh eggs for use in assisted reproductive technology. However, recent technological advances in freezing and thawing of eggs have led to the increasing popularity of frozen egg donation. Recipients and donors now face the choice between fresh egg donation and frozen egg banking, and medical practitioners must navigate these new options alongside clients and patients. In a reproductive bioeconomy in which race and ethnicity are key factors that determine the value of eggs, this paper asks, how does the nature of the substance (fresh vs. frozen) affect the ways in which these biomaterials are valued and racialized? What are the ways in which substance interacts with race in the context of egg donation? This paper draws on fieldwork with egg donors and medical practitioners in Honolulu, HI, one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the US with clinics that actively recruit donors for frozen egg banking. Drawing on ethnographic interviews and textual sources, I examine the factors that influence the choices donors and recipients make when deciding whether to pursue fresh or frozen egg donation. I show that frozen egg banking further entrenches inequalities embedded in assisted reproduction, particularly for donors of particular backgrounds deemed “less desirable” in assisted reproduction.

Author

• Daisy Deomampo, Fordham University