About
The Gamete Project
The Gamete Project is a research initiative that aims to investigate and understand the experiences and perspectives of individuals involved in donor conception. Our research is focused on exploring the social interactions between donor-conceived children, parents of donor-conceived children, and donors. We believe that this research can help to improve our understanding of this complex and sensitive field.
Who
The Gamete Project was pioneered by David O’Rourke and Kirsty Crompton. David O’Rourke is a Clinical Embryologist with 15 years of experience in the field of reproductive medicine. He has worked with some of the best clinics, donor banks and research institutions in the UK and internationally to publish scientific papers in peer-reviewed journals. Kirsty Crompton has more than 20 years of experience in the fertility sector, working for international organisations, implementing cutting-edge technology into laboratories enabling fertility clinics to increase their pregnancy rates.
Why
We’ve talked with donors, recipients and donor-conceived people and learned about their first-hand experiences, difficulties and trauma. Now, we want to learn if others have had the same experiences, difficulties and traumas in their lives. We think that when donor-conceived people don’t know their ancestry, it can lead to negative feelings and negative ongoing life experiences. Our surveys have been designed to better understand the wider community and their opinions.
More light must be shone on this area.
Data
The Gamete Project will use and store your anonymous data in electronic format on a secure UK network in accordance with the United Kingdom (UK), European Union (EU), and European Economic Area (EEA) Law.
Your anonymous data is held so we can get a wide perspective of donors, recipients and donor-conceived persons. We will retain the data for analysis for a period of 6 years, after which, it will be securely deleted.
We fund all our own research independently, and it’s important to note that we are not affiliated with any other institution. None of our participant's personal data is gathered, however, we want to make it clear that any information you provide in this survey will not be given or sold to any third party.
Did you know?
It is estimated that more than 8 million children worldwide have been born as a result of assisted reproductive technologies, many of whom have been conceived by sperm and oocyte donation. The donation of sperm and oocytes to help someone achieve their dream of having a child is one of the most selfless gifts. However, the donation process involves several individuals, and it is the balancing of the rights, interests and obligations of all individuals involved, which has, until more recently, often tended to favour the donors right to privacy and, therefore, donor anonymity.
In each country, donor anonymity law is different. The rise of consumer DNA tests (which allow people to connect with relatives they never knew they had, e.g. 23andMe and AncestryDNA websites) makes it virtually impossible for oocyte and sperm banks to guarantee donor anonymity.
If you are a donor, donor-conceived person, a recipient of donor oocytes (eggs), sperm or embryos, or you are contemplating donation, please take 5 minutes to complete our survey. We would appreciate your time and expertise - your opinions and feedback are fundamental for our research to understand the human experience and influence change in legislation to improve ongoing care and support for all individuals and service providers involved.
The anonymous data collected through this survey may be used by The Gamete Project to publish papers or reports. We plan to publish the summary results on our website with open access for all.
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Thank you!
The insights gathered from this survey, once carefully analysed, may lead to the exploration and founding of a donor bank focused primarily on the donor conieved persons rights. If pursued would be based on identified needs, opportunities and feedback from this survey.
Any progress of consideration of the possibility of founding a new company or significant future developments will be updated and announced on the website.