Half-price IVF hailed a success

More than half of the women who took part are pregnant

A scheme offering half-price IVF for women who donate their eggs to research has been hailed a success.

The Newcastle NHS Fertility Centre at Life selected 12 women to take part in the scheme after 100 came forward.

They paid £1,500 for the treatment, about half the usual cost. Now seven of them, including women from County Durham and Cumbria, are pregnant.

The extra eggs are used for research into stem cell therapies for conditions such as Parkinson's disease.

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority issued the licence for the two-year project which began last September.

The fertilised human eggs are used to create embryos from which stem cells can be derived.

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Professor Alison Murdoch, who is leading the project at the North East England Stem Cell Institute (NESCI), said: "We're delighted that this scheme has enabled so many couples to have a family from IVF treatment.

"We find that couples coming forward are really considering what it means and whether it's the right option for them.

"Their choice to take part in the egg-sharing scheme means that important research is able to progress and we hope these successes will encourage other people to come forward."

The scheme is the first to allow payment for IVF eggs used in research, increasing the numbers available and speeding up research progress, scientists claim.