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Southwest Florida physician, Dr. Craig R. Sweet, a reproductive endocrinologist and medical director of Specialists in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, and several of his patients will be featured in the new independently produced television series “The Fertility Chase” began airing on Saturday, May 15 from 8:30-9 a.m. on WE tv, the Women’s Entertainment cable television network. The half-hour program produced by Exodus Productions will highlight the issue of embryo donation and the story of 44-year-old Kerry Lewis, a patient of Sweet’s and mother-to-be.

“As I approached the age of 44, I said to myself, ‘even though I’m still not married, I have a lot of love to give’ so I pursued having a child on my own,” says Lewis. “With a history of reproductive problems, I was devastated to learn from my previous physician that I would need a hysterectomy. I would never have a child of my own.”

After researching her options including adoption, Lewis, a nurse, was referred to Sweet where she learned more about embryo donation and surrogacy. Through a process called cryopreservation or embryo freezing, excess embryos resulting from in vitro fertilization are stored for future use. When genetic parents elect not to use remaining embryos, rather than destroy the embryos or donate them to science, they may chose to donate their embryos to infertile patients. An estimated 500,000 embryos are currently in cryopreservation in the United States.

Lewis chose to accept donated embryos and a surrogate. Christina Lynn, a friend and fellow nursing colleague of Lewis, offered to be her surrogate.

Less than two weeks after Sweet transferred the donated embryos into Lynn, Lewis received the news that she had been hoping for.

“It was amazing to learn that Christina was pregnant and I would soon be a mother,” says Lewis. “I’m grateful to Christina for carrying my child and to Dr. Sweet and the miracle of modern medicine. Embryo donation is truly a gift of life.”

Lewis recently moved from Port Charlotte to Stuart but will return “home” to participate in the upcoming birth of her daughter.

Specialists in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, P.A. is a reproductive endocrinology practice providing comprehensive and compassionate reproductive endocrine care including IVF, preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), egg donation, embryo donation, gestational surrogacy, conventional surrogacy, oocyte cryopreservation, cryopreservation of ovarian/testicular tissues, sex selection, gynecology, genetics, endocrinology as well as menopausal diagnostic and treatment services.

For more information, visit http://www.dreamababy.com/the-fertility-chase.php or http://www.sweetfertility.com/. Become a fan of Dr. Sweet on Facebook and follow him on Twitter. Become a fan of The Fertility Chase on Facebook.

Local fertility patients and physician, Dr. Craig R. Sweet, a reproductive endocrinologist and medical director of Specialists in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, will be featured in a new independently produced television series “The Fertility Chase” scheduled to begin airing on May 1, 8:30 – 9 a.m. EST on WE tv, the Women’s Entertainment cable television network. The launch of the series, produced by Exodus Productions, coincides with National Infertility Awareness Week, April 24 – May 1, a week dedicated to raising awareness about infertility, a condition affecting 7.3 million Americans. The segment featuring Sweet and his patients is scheduled to air on Saturday, May 15 and will highlight the issue of embryo donation.

One local couple featured in the show, Walter and Amy Costello from Sanibel, underwent in vitro fertilization following diagnosis and treatment for endometriosis, a leading cause of infertility. Under the care of Sweet and his staff, the couple implanted two embryos and chose to save their remaining four embryos to try for more children in the future or to donate to another infertile patient.

Through a process called cryopreservation or embryo freezing, excess embryos resulting from in vitro fertilization are stored for future use. An estimated 500,000 embryos are currently in cryopreservation in the United States.

“In addition to minimizing the opportunity for multiple births, cryopreservation gives families the opportunity to have more children in the future,” says Sweet. “In the event that patients choose not to transfer and use all of their remaining embryos, our patients are given the option to donate them to research or to other infertility patients who have chosen embryo donation to build their family.”

“In our case, we hope to use our embryos to grow our family someday,” says Amy. “However, should we decide not to do so, we have indicated our wishes to give the gift of life to another family through embryo donation.”

Less than two weeks after the Costello’s own embryos were implanted, the couple received long-awaited news: “We are expecting a baby boy, due on June 20, Father’s day,” says Amy. “It was a long, emotionally and financially difficult journey, but we couldn’t be happier. We are truly blessed.”

Specialists in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, P.A. is a reproductive endocrinology practice providing comprehensive and compassionate reproductive endocrine care including IVF, preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD), egg donation, embryo donation, gestational surrogacy, conventional surrogacy, oocyte cryopreservation, cryopreservation of ovarian/testicular tissue, sex selection, gynecology, genetics, endocrinology as well as menopausal diagnostic and treatment services.

For more information, visit www.dreamababy.com. Become a fan of Dr. Sweet on Facebook and follow him on Twitter. Become a fan of The Fertility Chase on Facebook.

After nearly two years of trying to get pregnant, a diagnosis of endometriosis brought hope to Jennifer and Joseph Ariola of Fort Myers. After meeting with Dr. Craig R. Sweet, a reproductive endocrinologist and medical director of Specialists in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, the couple learned that Ariola was among the 30 to 40 percent of infertile women who have endometriosis.

“After struggling so long and not knowing the cause of our infertility, we were so hopeful to finally have an explanation and treatment options,” says Ariola. “It’s often a silent disease and many women, including myself, are unaware that they have it until they try for years unsuccessfully to have a baby. That’s why awareness is so important.”

National Endometriosis Awareness Month is an annual event to raise awareness about the disease, its symptoms, treatments and ongoing research. One of the leading causes of female infertility, endometriosis is a chronic gynecological disease in which the cells from the endometrium (the lining of the uterus) grow outside the uterus and spread to other areas such as the pelvis and ovaries. The resulting damage can block the reproductive organs, in some cases preventing conception. In addition, chemical secretions from the endometriosis itself may interfere with fertility by harming eggs, sperm and embryos.The most common symptoms of endometriosis are pelvic pain, painful intercourse and painful periods. For many women, the pain of endometriosis is so severe and debilitating that it impacts their lives in significant ways. Yet once diagnosed, the condition is potentially treatable. 

“The only way to be sure a woman has endometriosis is to perform a surgical procedure called a laparoscopy that allows us look inside the pelvic cavity with a narrow telescope,” says Sweet. “Treatment is individualized for each patient and depends on several factors such as the severity and stage of the disease, its precise location, the woman’s age and the presence of pain or other symptoms. The good news is that 80 to 90 percent of the patients will have an improvement of their symptoms for up to a year following surgery. Depending on the stage of the disease, the chances of becoming pregnant also increase for most patients following treatment of the disease.”

After Sweet surgically removed the pelvic endometriosis and a polyp found within Ariola’s uterus, the couple tried to conceive naturally. Another six months passed without success and they found themselves back in Sweet’s office to discuss further treatment.

“Following diagnosis and treatment, about one-third of the women with endometriosis achieve pregnancy naturally,” says Sweet. “In some cases, however, ovulation induction combined with intra-uterine insemination or in vitro fertilization may be the next best steps with superb success rates.”

“Dr. Sweet shared with us the statistics, we discussed our chances and he offered us solutions,” says Ariola. “We opted for in vitro fertilization, a process during which my eggs were removed and harvested with my husband’s sperm. We then implanted our two embryos and fortunately, it worked on our first try. Last month, I gave birth to twins – a boy and a girl! As I hold my babies in my arms, I can honestly say it was all worth it.”

Specialists in Reproductive Medicine and Surgery, P.A. is a reproductive endocrinology practice providing comprehensive and compassionate reproductive endocrine care including IVF, preimplantation genetic implantation diagnosis (PGD), egg donation, embryo donation, gestational surrogacy, conventional surrogacy, cryopreservation of ovarian/testicular cells/tissues, sex selection, gynecology, genetics, endocrinology as well as menopausal diagnostic and treatment services.For more information, visit www.dreamababy.com. Become a fan of Dr. Sweet on Facebook and follow him on Twitter.