FAQ's

The following links to health-related web sites may be helpful to patients and clients visiting our site. Please be aware that each site is responsible for its own published material and these links do not represent an endorsement of or by CAN-AM Cryoservices Corp.

Books

Embrace Your Fertility, by Timea Belej-Rak, MD

When you are struggling with fertility, navigating your options may feel overwhelming. In Embrace Your Fertility, Dr. Timea Belej-Rak demystifies the process with a guide that melds heartfelt patient stories and expert knowledge on the latest resources. It includes a look at both mainstream medical interventions and complementary health options from diet to acupuncture and views your fertility journey from new perspectives.

Sperm & Egg Providers

Cryogenic Laboratories (CLI)

CLI was founded 40 years ago as the first U.S. sperm bank and is one of the few sperm banks fully accredited by the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB). CLI provides the most extensive range of Donor information to clients at no charge, including Donor photos, Essays and Audio Interviews.

Fairfax Cryobank

Fairfax Cryobank has been distributing Donor sperm in the U.S. for over 20 years. Fairfax makes extensive use of PCR (polymerase chain reaction) techniques to test its Donors for infectious diseases, which is significantly more sensitive than traditional testing methods. Fairfax is the only Sperm bank to utilize PCR to test for HPV and HSV.

NW Cryobank

NorthWest (NW) Cryobank has been providing donor sperm for more than 25 years, with a large selection of donors newly available in Canada, and many anonymous donors suitable for the Québec health insurance program.

NWCryobank is one of the premiere Canadian-compliant donor egg banks, utilizing cutting-edge vitrification technology. Their ready-to-ship frozen donor eggs and large selection of donor ethnicities make the selection and use of donor eggs faster and more convenient than fresh donor egg cycles.

Seattle Sperm Bank

Seattle Sperm Bank is one of North America's leading sperm banks with a focus on providing the highest-quality Open ID Donors. SSB is the industry-leading cryobank in advanced sperm donor screening: SSB conducts criminal background checks and verifies educational transcripts on all donors.

SSB is also the only sperm bank to have all donors evaluated by a counselor with a Master’s of Social Work, helping donors to understand the full implications of being a donor, including the possibility of future contact from offspring. We combine our dedication to quality and customer service with simplified processes and lower prices.

Family-Building Resources

Vicky M. Ringuette, Lawyer & Mediator

A bilingual lawyer specializing in family law, child protection and fertility law matters by using alternative dispute resolution processes such as collaborative law, negotiation, mediation and/or arbitration.

The Adoption Council of Ontario

Web site to learn more about adoption from an Ontario perspective, whether you are a potential or existing adoptive parent, birth parent adopted person.

Canadian Health Network (CHN)

A national, bilingual Internet-based health information service. Health Canada, its founding partner, provides funding for CHN.

Infertility Awareness Association of Canada, Inc.

A national charitable organization working to promote choices and access to treatment for those with infertility concerns through awareness, support and education.

Infertility Network

A registered Canadian charity providing information & support to people experiencing infertility to help them make informed choices about their family-building options.

International Council on Infertility Information Dissemination

NCIID provides an online resource of consumer-targeted infertility information covering cutting-edge technologies and treatments.

IVF Connections

Connects people going through IVF to information, support, and others going through the same experiences. IVF Connections features IVF bulletin boards, IVF e-mail lists, IVF chatrooms, IVF questions and answers, IVF stories, IVF links and an "IVF in Canada" section.

Resolve

A nonprofit organization founded to provide timely, compassionate support and information to people experiencing infertility and to increase awareness of infertility issues through public education and advocacy.

Multiple Births Canada

A National support organization for multiple birth families and individuals in Canada

Notice: As of November 2015 the purchase of donor sperm is no longer funded through the Assisted Reproduction Program in Quebec.

Health Canada regulates the donor screening, processing importation, distribution and use of donor sperm and eggs in Canada. All donors of sperm and eggs must comply with the Assisted Human Reproduction (AHR) Act (2004) and the AHR Consent Regulations (2007). Donor sperm must also comply with the Processing and Distribution of Semen for Assisted Conception Regulations (2000).

Reviews each donor specimen before it is imported to ensure it complies with regulation and standards. Our facility and our documentation are inspected annually by Health Canada, and we are proud to report an outstanding record of quality and safety.

Vitrification is a medical method of rapid freezing. Eggs, also known scientifically as oocytes, frozen by vitrification have been shown to have a higher survival rate after thawing when compared to slower methods.

You can fine the most current pregnancy rates for Fairfax EggBank and NWCryobank on their websites:

Studies of large U.S. fertility clinics with donor egg programs have determined that the use of vitrified eggs result in fewer cancellation cycles and shorter wait times to treatment.

Products CAN-AM distributes are compliant with the screening and testing requirements of both the American Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada. Health Canada ensures that licenced tests are conducted on all samples for infectious diseases such as HIV, Hepatitis B & C, and syphilis. Donor sperm is also tested for the Sexually Transmitted Infections Chlamydia and Gonorrhea.

Donor profiles are viewable from our catalogue. We also provide a link to access each bank's website for additional donor information, photos and other items available directly from the donor bank.

Generally, open-identity donor programs offered by sperm and egg banks ("Open-ID", "Identity Options", "Identity Disclosure") allow the offspring of a donor to receive the donor’s name and last-known contact information from the sperm or egg bank once they reach the age of 18. Alternatively, the bank may instead attempt to contact the donor on behalf of the offspring without directly revealing the identifying information to the offspring. Donor-conceived children are free to decide whether they want to receive this information about the donor, and whether or not to follow up on it. Information about the client using the donor sperm or eggs, or about the resulting offspring, is never revealed to the donor.

The specific conditions of open-identity programs vary between the banks, and you may need to register your child's birth to participate (see "How do I report a Pregnancy?"). Please contact the bank directly for more information.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, CAN-AM is not currently able to interact with on-site visitors. Please feel free to email or call us and we will do our best to assist you with your donor selection, or anything else.

Each bank maintains its own register of associated pregnancies and/or births. Registration is important for the bank to contact you in the case of an important update in the donor’s medical information, and is required for participation in donor identity-release programs. Please visit the donor’s bank website for details.

Each bank provides updates to donors' medical information where available. They may contact you directly if you provide them with your contact information, or they may provide the information to your health care provider. The information may also be available directly on the supplier’s website.

Send an email to donoreggs@canamcryo.com with your donor selection and we will send you further instructions.

Each egg bank requires several agreement forms to be completed at the time of order. Once CAN-AM confirms the availability of your donor, you may download the required forms available on the Donor Eggs Forms page. Please send the completed, signed forms to CAN-AM by fax or by scanning them and emailing them to info@canamcryo.com.

To ensure that you receive your eggs in advance of treatment, we recommend that you place your order request at least 3 weeks in advance. Payment must be received prior to shipment.

To report a pregnancy or birth using donor sperm, please click on your donor bank's link and complete the requested form:

Fairfax Cryobank

http://www.fairfaxcryobank.ca/pregnancyreport.php

Seattle Sperm Bank

https://www.seattlespermbank.com/services/pregnancy-reporting/

NW Cryobank

Sign into your account at https://www.nwcryobank.ca/sign-in/ and click on Report a Pregnancy at the bottom of the page.

CAN-AM is a Canadian owned and operated importer of donor sperm and eggs from seven U.S. cryobanks. Our facility is inspected regularly by Health Canada and we maintain the highest standards of regulatory compliance.

The products CAN-AM distributes are compliant with the screening and testing requirements of both the American Food and Drug Administration and Health Canada. Health Canada ensures that repeated tests are conducted on all samples for infectious diseases such as HIV, Hepatitis B & C, and syphilis. Donor sperm is also tested for the Sexually Transmitted Infections Chlamydia and Gonorrhea.

CAN-AM displays donor profiles in our catalogue, and we provide links to access each Cryobank’s website for additional donor information and photos. More information is available at these supplier’s websites.

Open-identity donor programs allow the offspring of a donor to contact the sperm or egg bank once they reach adulthood and can be provided with the name and last-known contact information for the donor. The bank may act as an intermediary and attempt to contact the donor without revealing any identifying information to the offspring. Donor- conceived children are free to decide whether they want to receive this information, and whether or not to follow up on it.

Information about the client using the donor sperm or eggs, or about the resulting offspring, is never revealed to the donor under any circumstance.

Specific variations between open-identity programs vary between banks- please contact the bank directly for more information.

Each bank maintains its own register of associated pregnancies and/or births. Registration is important for the bank to contact you in the case of an important update in the donor’s medical information, and is required for participation in donor identity-release programs. Please visit the donor’s bank website for details.

Each bank provides updates to donors' medical information where available. They may contact you directly if you provide them with your contact information, or they may provide the information to your health care provider. The information may also be available directly on the supplier’s website.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, CAN-AM is not currently able to interact with on-site visitors. Please feel free to email or call us and we will do our best to assist you with your donor selection, or anything else.

Click the order now button on the donor catalogue next to your chosen donor to submit your request. Any assistance you require, including if you are ordering within 48 hours of your treatment in a priority order, please call CAN-AM directly to ensure that your order is processed quickly.

All ordering questions can be directed towards the Ordering FAQ.

Your clinic will advise you on what day the vials (samples) need to arrive- we recommend that you order donor sperm by Day 3 of your cycle to ensure your shipment will arrive at your clinic when you need it.

Your clinic can tell you whether they have a preference. “Washed” donor vials have been processed at the sperm bank before freezing, and are used for intrauterine insemination (IUI) directly after thawing. “Unwashed” vials can be used for intracervical insemination (ICI) or may be washed at your clinic prior to being used for IUI.

Your clinic will tell you how many vials you will need to order per cycle of treatment. While reproductive health is a science, there is no concrete timeline to the process, as it varies between patients. You can order vials for future treatment cycles and store them at CAN-AM, ensuring that you have a guaranteed supply when you need it.

Banks must hold donoe sperm specimens in quarantine for at least six months before they can be released for use. At the time of each release, many vials may be released at once, or only a few, we cannot be sure that vials from your chosen donor will be consistently available.

ensure that you will have a guaranteed supply of your chosen donor, we recommend that you pre-purchase vials ahead of time. Additional vials will provide you with the option of potentially having multiple children in the future using the same donor. Vials can be stored at CAN-AM and shipped to your clinic when needed.

Our facility offers both short and long term reserve storage for vials of donor sperm. Our Storage FAQ can provide more information.

Vials are eligible for a 50% refund up to 12 months after purchase if the vials remain in storage at CAN-AM. Sperm banks will not accept vials for refund if kept in doctor’s offices or clinics, as storage conditions cannot be guaranteed. Any vials returned to CAN-AM from a clinic can continue to be stored for use, but cannot be refunded. Storage fees are not refundable.

Due to COVID-19, CAN-AM sperm banking services are limited. Please contact us for urgent cases and we will do our best to accommodate.

Please call or email to book an appointment to bank your sperm. Blood testing must be completed prior to storage. You can collect your sperm sample on-site at our Hamilton laboratory, or at home and deliver it to the lab if you live within 1 hour’s drive.

If you are not able to travel to our lab, you can order a PreServe Sperm Transport Kit. The Kit allows you to collect your sample at home or in the hospital and ship it to our lab via FedEx Priority Overnight shipping. Please contact us for more information, or to order your kit.

Choose the storage term that works best for you: by month or by year. No matter how many deposits you make, you only pay one storage fee.

*Due to COVID-19, CAN-AM sperm banking services are limited. Please contact us for urgent cases and we will do our best to accommodate.*

CAN-AM provides sperm banking for men undergoing cancer treatment, in partnership with HART Fertility Centre. The Canadian Cancer Society recommends sperm banking for men undergoing radiation therapy or chemotherapy, or having surgery to treat testicular cancer.

Sperm banking clients can visit our main laboratory or use our PreServe kit to collect at home or in the hospital. The PreServe sperm Transport kit can be shipped back to CAN-AM from any FedEx distribution centre with Priority service in Canada.

To ensure the best quality sperm sample is stored, we recommend that you bank your sperm before you begin any treatments which can be damaging to sperm. We will work closely with you, your doctor and your treatment centre to begin your banking as quickly as possible and avoid delay in your treatment.

*Due to COVID-19, CAN-AM sperm banking services are limited. Please contact us for urgent cases and we will do our best to accommodate.*

Storing sperm is a simple way to protect against the possibility of future fertility loss. Many of our clients have cited medical procedures such as vasectomy, cancer treatment, and the surgical or hormonal treatments associated with gender-confirming surgery as common reasons for banking sperm. There are many factors that may increase the risk of fertility loss: occupations or recreational activities that could result in injury to the spine or reproductive organs are several, but exposure to chemicals or radiation could also cause harmful genetic mutation. Common medications and chronic diseases that cause erectile dysfunction can indirectly impair fertility as well.

Physicians also recommend banking some sperm as a temporary “backup” if you are undergoing In-vitro Fertilization IVF (IVF) treatment. CAN-AM has been providing sperm freezing and banking services since 2001.

Step 1

Our Blood Testing request form will help you and your doctor complete the infectious disease blood testing necessary for storing your sperm. Then, either fax or email us your results.

Your storage account can be set up by completing the account registration forms. Bring everything filled out to your appointment, or they can be scanned/emailed or faxed in advance to us at the address listed in our contact information.

Step 2

Call or email to book an appointment at our lab in Hamilton, ON- if you are unable to travel to our lab to make deposits, you can order our PRESERVE Sperm transport kit to collect the sample at your convenience and in the comfort of home.

Step 3

Our Blood Testing request form will help you and your doctor complete the infectious disease blood testing necessary for storing your sperm. Then, either fax or email us your results.

Collect your sperm sample for deposit at the lab or at home with the PreServe kit. Refer to our ‘Banking Fees’ section for freezing and kit costs. We will freeze, analyze, and assess the quality of the sperm. At your request, we will send a copy of this assessment report to your doctor, and based on the results, they may advise you to store more than one deposit to meet your goals.

Step 4

Storage fees are flat- no matter how many deposits you choose to make, you pay the same monthly fee. Annual or multi-year storage packages can also be purchased at a reduced rate.

Step 5

Once you are prepared to begin fertility treatment and are ready to use the sperm, you can have your deposit shipped directly to your clinic.

Frozen Sperm can be used to achieve a pregnancy by insemination or during IVF (in vitro fertilization) treatment, with or without the process known as ICSI (intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection).

Individuals at risk of being unable to produce healthy sperm in the future may want to consider freezing and storing their sperm. Surgery or injury to the reproductive organs, as well as the lower body or back can all impair fertility, as can exposure to mutation causing chemicals or radiation. Erectile dysfunction, a common side effect of numerous diseases or medications, can also indirectly lead to reduced fertility.

While you will need to contact your doctor to process bloodwork before you book your first appointment with CAN-AM, you can call to arrange the freezing and storage of sperm without a referral, at any time you are comfortable.

Professions that involve higher risk of physical injury to the lower body and back can include military service, law enforcement and professional sports. Other professions that can increase risk of lost fertility are those that expose men to high heat, such as firefighting and types of manufacturing, as well as the exposure of toxins such as mutagenic chemicals and radioactivity. Some medications or even recreational sports can lead to erectile dysfunction which can indirectly cause loss of fertility.

Set up an account by completing the paperwork here and fax or email it to us at the contact information here. To book a collection appointment, or if you have any questions about the account paperwork, please call 1-888-245-3471 or email us at info@canamcryo.com.

You can set up a sperm storage account with us by completing the Sperm Banking document found here. If you have any questions, please call us at 1-888-245-3471 or email us at info@canamcryo.com.

You can either make an appointment to collect at our Hamilton laboratory or you can collect in the comfort of your home and deliver the sample by appointment if you are within 1 hour’s commute. If you are unable to visit during our hours of operation, you can collect and ship your sperm from home using the PreServe Transport Kit.

We recommend that you collect your sperm by masturbation with 2-7 days of sexual abstinence if possible, or you may purchase a special collection condom instead (see Banking Fees). We do not recommend the use of any lubricants as they can be damaging to sperm. If you are using the PreServe Sperm Transport Kit, be sure to follow the directions for collection.

Our home collection kit is available for any client unable to travel to our lab to deposit sperm. The PreServe Sperm Transport Kit allows you to collect your sample in the comfort and privacy of your home, and includes easy shipping instructions to our lab for storage.

We recommend 2-7 days of abstinence before collection to achieve the best sperm quality.

Reproductive products are frozen in a process called cryopreservation. This safely stores biological cells, like sperm and eggs, at extremely low temperatures. Cryopreserved sperm and eggs are frozen in vials and are stored in our secured facility in tanks cooled with liquid nitrogen (-195 °C).

Cryopreserved sperm can be stored indefinitely. There have been entirely normal and healthy pregnancies from sperm stored for up to 20 years.

Sperm samples can be collected at our laboratory in Hamilton by appointment during our normal hours of operation. If you live within one hour’s driving distance from our lab, you can also collect at home and deliver the sample by appointment during work hours.

If you are unable visit the lab for any reason during those hours, consider banking by PreServe Kit.

Sperm samples can be collected at home by masturbation or by using a special condom (please order when you book your appointment). Please ensure you have 2-7 days of sexual abstinence before collecting. We do not recommend the use of lubricants, as they can be damaging to the sperm. If you are transporting the sperm to our Hamilton lab, please deliver within 1 hour and maintain the temperature close to body temperature. If you are using the PreServe Sperm Transport kit, instructions for the collection and preparation of the sperm sample for shipping will be included.