Women freeze eggs to wait for 'Mr Right'

A study of women at a Belgian clinic found half wanted to freeze their eggs to take the pressure off finding a partner, a fertility conference heard.

A third were also having eggs frozen as an "insurance policy" against infertility.

Many students would also consider the procedure to focus on a career before motherhood, a separate UK survey found.

The study of nearly 200 students showed eight in 10 doing a medical degree would freeze their eggs to delay starting a family.

Among sports and education students half said they would consider it.

Egg freezing is still a relatively new technology, which enables a woman to save eggs for future IVF treatment if needed.

The chance of success is better with younger, healthier eggs, yet most women currently choosing the procedure are in their late 30s and opting for egg freezing as a "last resort".

The average cost of egg freezing is around £3,000 per attempt and some women may have to undergo up to three cycles in order to preserve a good number of eggs.

Speaking at the European...