PGT for aneuploidy does not affect three-cycle cumulative IVF discontinuation rate in women of advanced maternal age

Research question: Does preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy (PGT-A) influence the discontinuation rate in women with advanced maternal age (AMA) undergoing IVF? Design: Retrospective longitudinal cohort study carried out at a single IVF clinic in Turkey. In total, 401 consecutive AMA cases were included. Discontinuation rates of pre-intervention (conventional IVF; June 2013 to October 2014; 203 couples; 270 cycles) and post-intervention (PGT-A; April 2015 to June 2016; 198 couples; 285 cycles) periods were compared. To delineate the reason for discontinuation, a telephone survey was conducted. Primary outcome measure was cumulative discontinuation rate before completing three cycles of IVF treatment without achieving an ongoing pregnancy. Results: The discontinuation rates after the first and second failed cycles were comparable between the two arms as were the cumulative discontinuation rates before completing three cycles. The cumulative ongoing pregnancy rate per embryo transfer was significantly higher in the PGT-A arm (43.2% versus 16.8%; P < 0.001). The cumulative ongoing pregnancy rate per patient was comparable between the two arms (20.7% versus 16.3%, respectively). Female age was the only significant contributor to treatment discontinuation (hazard ratio [HR] 1.07; 95% CI 1.09 to 1.13). Of the 296 couples discontinuing treatment in both arms, 179 (179/296 [60.5%]) participated in the survey; overall, psychological burden was the main reason for treatment discontinuation (37/179 [20.7%]). Conclusions: About 90% of AMA cases not achieving an ongoing pregnancy discontinue IVF treatment before completing three cycles. Discontinuation rate is not reduced by carrying out PGT-A. Female ageing is the only significant contributor, with a hazard of discontinuing further IVF treatment of 7% with female ageing of 1-year.