Progress with cryostorage of female gametes

A brief overview of human oocyte/ovarian tissue cryopreservation is made, with a discussion of the merits of conventional protocols. Practical issues of cryopreservation such as which oocyte maturity stage is used for cryo-storage, and which post-thaw strategies are most optimal are considered. Alternative cryopreservation technologies are put into perspective with special attention being paid to vitrification. Benefits of female gamete cryostorage are: formation of donor "egg banks" to facilitate and lessen the cost of oocyte donation for women unable to produce their own oocytes; provision of egg cryostorage for women wishing to delay their reproductive choices; and cryopreservation of ovarian tissue taken from women about to undergo therapy deleterious to such tissue, which may threaten their future reproductive health.