Buyer beware: Montreal's fertility clinics sell donated sperm to infertile couples, but background checks on the donors are less than rigorous

by DOMINIQUE RITTER

Wanted: virile young men.

"We're looking for students, mostly. Young men, generally single with an education who are nice," says Kim Wood with a laugh. "I ask them a lot of questions about their personality traits, like what kind of foods they like."

It's a dating service of sorts, where the couples never meet and procreation takes place via tubes and technicians. The sex is very safe and the men get paid. Although romance doesn't exactly factor into the equation, babies often do.

The lucky candidates who make the cut are subjected to testing. Family history and medical background are duly recorded, diseases are tested for and virility is measured. Those who make the cut are invited to supply a sample of sperm twice per week for $40 to $50 a pop.

For the studs of the sperm business, the financial benefits aren't sizable enough to support a family, but if they wanted families they probably wouldn't be squirting into jars. What they do enjoy is a little self-lovin' with the help of some titillating props.

"We have a room with adult magazines and I think there are some videos," says Wood, a technician at the Royal Victoria Hospital who is in charge of the sperm donor clinic at the McGill reproductive centre. "We call it the masturbatorium."

Identifying the Y chromosome

So who are these guys fathering the children of infertile couples?

Their identity is of course kept strictly under wraps by Montreal's three sperm banks. But how well do the clinicians investigate the donors?

The Mirror spoke with Willie (not his real name) about his experience as a donor at a Montreal clinic eight years ago and the application process he underwent to become a participant in the program.

"I had to fill out a bunch a forms about my medical history and family history. There was a list of a whole bunch of diseases, but I didn't bother to check any of the boxes. I feel pretty guilty about it now because there is a history of cancer, heart disease and hard core insanity in my family."

Procrea BioSciences Inc., a private company that runs a fertility clinic and sperm bank, rejects about 10 per cent of its donor applicants based on information they supply in the questionnaire on family diseases. But Louise Raymond, the coordinator of the sperm bank, admits that none of the information provided by the applicants is double-checked by the clinic.

At the McGill centre, Wood says that she tests for a certain number of diseases like sickle cell anaemia but "overall it comes down to trust."

"They tested for obvious diseases, but there's no way they can tell that my father has multiple personality disorder," Willie said. "Now I have some regrets and I hope there are no crazy kids out there."

Motivation

Procrea receives about 100 applicants per year for its donor program, of which it accepts about ten. So clearly there is no shortage of virile males ready to wank into a cup and sell their seed. But why do they do it?

"It's first of all about helping people. It's altruism," says Raymond firmly. The selfless acts of Procrea's donors produce sperm for 175 to 200 couples' artificial insemination per year. (The insemination procedure carries a price tag of $150 at Procrea and $125 at the McGill centre and is performed twice, on consecutive days.) "For donors, it's definitely not for the money. We only give $40 per sample. Once the prospective candidate learns about all the tests and the time involved, they only proceed if they are truly committed. If their motivation is money, they don't come."

Raymond is being neither funny nor punny. In fact, she blatantly denies suggestions that men are interested in financial compensation for their labour of self-love. But according to Willie, everyone he came into contact with during his experience as a spooge spring was propelled by the primal urge for cash.

"There is some kind of male pleasure in being able to squirt on demand. Men want to see if their boys will swim. And perhaps there is some ingrown need to spread your genetic information," he said. "But really, it's about the money. Two donations per week means $100. That's good easy money, especially if you're a student."

Wood concurs. She admits that she wishes that money didn't enter into the equation, but ultimately, with the inconveniences incurred by the donors, she feels that financial compensation for a medical service is not unreasonable.

Retiring the champs

Don't expect to make a lifetime career of providing sperm. For starters, neither Procrea nor the McGill centre want to see you if you happen to be over 40. Procrea only uses its donors for a year or two before they are deemed to have provided an ample supply of spunk. In their Montreal clinic, sperm from one donor is only used for up to 10 pregnancies. However, Procrea will use the same donor for additional pregnancies at its other clinics in Chicoutimi and Sherbrooke.

After a one-year stint with Procrea, a donor will have provided about 500 sperm straws, which can be kept on ice (cryopreserved) for over 25 years. Raymond says that two years is the longest donor commitment they will permit.

But according to Willie, other factors may contribute to premature withdrawal from the donor program. He describes one instance in which he spent a good 20 minutes in the "sample" bathroom of the McGill centre trying to coax out his biweekly donation. But with another donor waiting outside the door to earn his own $50, Willie failed to produce. What he calls performance anxiety brought an end to his work at the clinic.

"I kind of burned out on the work. It takes a certain mentality to be committed to the job. I used to be a master whacker, but I'm more romantic now, I think. That cold bathroom stall thing became really tedious after a while.

"The staff tried to be really professional and matter-of-fact, but when the nurse in charge would comment on my sample she always had a twinkle in her eye. I always felt like I was being praised for a successful toilet training venture."