Dear Niko,
Sorry to hear about the Hodgkins and now the failed ICSI attempts. Implantation failure is a nightmare because it leaves everyone devestated and with no answer.
We are in a roughly similar boat using sperm from after my husbands cancer treatment. We have had conflicting reports on it's suitability though. Now had 3 failed fresh and 2 frozen ICSI attempts. We have nearly run out of frozen sperm tissue now.
That aside here are some areas that we looked at to try and solve our problem.
1. The work of Dr Carter. He is an immumologist in the USA but now working in collaberation with a couple of UK clinics. He has a theory about male/female immunity that may interest you. Here is a snip from one of his newsletters.
<snip>
Male Immunity and Recurrent Miscarriage and Implantation Failure
Our attention has recently turned to the male immune system in IVF implantation failure and early recurrent miscarriage. There is a significant body of data compiled over the last ten years showing that seminal fluid plays a critical role in supporting implantation and placental development. Seminal fluid is a complex mixture of cells and chemical compounds. The cellular component of the seminal fluid is primarily comprised of cells derived from the blood. These include natural killer cells (NK cells) and T cells. Likewise the chemical components of seminal fluid are derived from blood and consist, in part, of cytokines and other important immune mediators.It is becoming clear that pro-inflammatory seminal fluid can create a hostile environment for implantation. For example, several studies have independently shown that the defining Th1 cytokine, gamma interferon, is frequently present in the seminal fluid of infertile men. Another interesting and consistent finding is that the immunosuppressive cytokines IL-10 and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) are reduced in the seminal fluid of infertile men. What has been left largely unexplored are the mechanisms that exist to prevent immunocompetent T cells and NK cells contained in seminal fluid from destroying the immunologically foreign implantation site. Such mechanisms do in fact exist and we are beginning to understand how these factors contribute to successful implantation.Unfortunately a standard workup for miscarriage and implantation failure rarely, if ever, includes immune evaluation for the male sexual partner. This is a major shortcoming. As of March 2005, we will begin to address the role of the male immune system in pregnancy failure through a new testing battery and treatment. Because the seminal fluid is a filtrate of the blood plasma, a simple blood test is the entry point for this testing battery. Even couples that have had extensive male factor testing could benefit from this protocol.
<End of snip>
His website is here (and you can ask questions on his message board)
http://www.multiplemiscarriage.com/
2. Sperm DNA fragmentation tests. These are still in the experimental stage. See
http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,27756.0.html
http://www.scsadiagnostics.com/
3. Has your wife had her NK cells and TNF/a tested as part of her immune testing?
see
http://www.repro-med.net/
4. Is it possible that one of you has an infection that could be causing implantation failure? see
http://www.fertilitysolution.com/
Hope that some of this helps. Pls let me know that yout think.
With warmest regards,
