Background
Sara and Ahmed (names changed for privacy) had been trying to conceive for seven years when they reached out to SSAnkang. Sara, 36, had had three failed IVF cycles in the Gulf — the most recent one ending in a missed miscarriage at 8 weeks. Ahmed, 39, had a borderline-low total motile count.
Why China
The decision to travel was driven by three factors: cost (one cycle in their home country was 3× the China price), the case volume of leading Shanghai centers (over 25,000 IVF cycles annually combined), and the availability of advanced PGT-A genetic screening — which their previous clinic could not perform in-house.
Pre-Travel Workup
Our case manager Lin sent both partners' records to the partner reproductive endocrinology team in Shanghai. The team identified two issues the previous clinic had not addressed: Sara had a thin endometrial lining on prior cycles (peak 6.8mm vs ideal ≥8mm), and the protocol had been a standard antagonist with no individualization.
Recommended adjustments:
- Switch to long agonist protocol with individual estrogen priming
- Add growth hormone supplementation during stimulation
- Plan freeze-all → modified natural FET to optimize lining
- PGT-A on all suitable embryos
The Trip
The couple flew Riyadh → Beijing → Shanghai (one-stop, 13 hours total). They stayed 17 days for the stimulation + retrieval portion in a serviced apartment 8 minutes from the hospital — see our accommodation guide for similar setups in our Hefei HQ.
Stimulation took 11 days. Retrieval yielded 14 oocytes; 11 fertilized via ICSI; 7 reached blastocyst stage; 4 cleared PGT-A as euploid.
The Frozen Transfer
They returned home for two months while Sara underwent endometrial preparation under coordinated remote monitoring with her local OB-GYN (we facilitated weekly video consults with the Shanghai team). When her lining reached 9.2mm, they flew back for a 5-day trip — single embryo transfer, two days of bed rest, then a flight home.
Outcome
Beta hCG 12 days post-transfer: 327 mIU/mL. The pregnancy progressed without complication. They welcomed a healthy baby girl 38 weeks later. Total cost across both trips (procedure + travel + accommodation): approximately USD 12,400 — less than half of one cycle in their home country.
What They Said Helped Most
- "Having one person we trusted, who knew our whole story" — referring to consistent case manager support
- The pre-trip Zoom consultation with the doctor before booking flights
- Multilingual in-hospital escort for the consent forms in particular
- The honest conversation when only 4 embryos cleared PGT-A — and the clinic didn't pressure them to transfer untested embryos
What Surprised Them
- Hospital staff were on time. Every appointment.
- The amount of paperwork (Chinese law requires extensive notarized marriage docs — we coordinated this in advance)
- How quiet the inpatient ward was during the retrieval — they expected loud, got calm
Read More
For an in-depth look at IVF in China for foreign patients, see our complete 2026 guide.
Disclaimer: All patient names changed. Specific clinical figures composited from typical cases at our partner reproductive medicine centers. Results vary by individual.
