Daily IVF pill gives hope to thousands of women trying to conceive

WOMEN undergoing IVF treatment have been given fresh hope with a daily pill that could significantly boost their chances of conceiving.

-  Hanna Geissler

The drug, OXO-001, targets the lining of the uterus to improve embryo implantation and pregnancy rates.

Chances of experiencing a live birth rose by almost a fifth for those who took the pill in a clinical trial of 96 women aged between 18 and 40.

Study leader Dr Agnes Arbat, chief executive of the drug's developer Oxolife, said: "Most rounds of IVF or ICSI still end in failure - many because a viable embryo does not implant. A simple-to-take pill that materially improves the chance of success would therefore be of huge benefit to those who want a baby."

Rolling

She said the phase-two study "shows that hope is a step closer".

The drug works by encouraging the embryo to stop "rolling", to invade endometrial tissue and to complete implantation.

All women in the trial underwent single-embryo transfer using donor eggs, with 54 taking a daily dose of OXO-001 and 42 given a placebo.

They began taking doses one menstrual cycle before the transfer cycle and continued until five weeks after it.

The medication appeared to significantly boost chances of a clinically confirmed pregnancy.