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Fertility clinics are today accused of exploiting desperate women by asking them to donate eggs for cash and free treatment.
Women on low incomes are offered IVF at no cost – if they agree to give away half the healthy eggs they produce.
They are told ‘an egg isn’t a baby’ and donating is ‘just like giving blood’. The clinics charge other infertile couples as much as £7,500 a time for the donated eggs.
Undercover reporters from the Mail visited clinics posing as would-be parents who could not afford treatment. One consultant told them not to disclose in writing that they were planning to donate for financial reasons. He also boasted of the profits from trading eggs.
Another doctor said a reporter could trade her eggs for cash and use the money to fund her treatment.
Last night watchdogs launched an investigation and threatened the clinics with regulatory action.
‘I fear that some in my profession have no moral or ethical compass,’ said fertility pioneer Lord Winston after reviewing the evidence.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said the Mail’s findings were...