Erin Lavery, who successfully underwent cancer treatment at the age of 21, is now facing a race against time and considerable financial strain to preserve her chance of having a family. Following her cancer diagnosis and subsequent treatment, Lavery was informed that she might be unable to conceive children naturally.
She is now pursuing fertility treatment, specifically egg preservation, to have a chance at having a baby in the future. However, the National Health Service (NHS) will not fund this procedure because she has already received cancer treatment. This means Lavery must personally finance the entire process, which she estimates will cost £8,000 for the two cycles needed to obtain the optimal number of eggs.
Lavery, a nail technician, had to take two years off work during her cancer treatment, impacting her financial stability. She expressed shock and stress over the unexpected cost, noting that she had always worked hard and anticipated being in a different financial position by now. The expense of fertility treatment was not something she had foreseen, particularly after the disruption caused by her illness.
"It's also coming with a financial burden that if I choose to do this, it's going to impact my near future," Lavery stated, highlighting the significant impact the procedure will have on her finances. "The way it works is you can have multiple cycles to get the best outcome, I will need two cycles to get the correct amount eggs."
The situation underscores the challenges some young individuals face in accessing fertility services after undergoing cancer treatment, often leading to out-of-pocket expenses for procedures that could be covered if pursued prior to cancer treatment.