Egg and embryo freezing are considered to be the most efficacious and standard of care options to preserve fertility. The process involves taking injectable hormones to stimulate the ovaries to ripen multiple eggs at once. Then the eggs are removed in a minor, outpatient surgery. Using ultrasound, the fertility specialist guides a needle through the upper vagina into each follicle on the surface of the ovary, “harvesting” the egg inside. Once eggs have been removed, they can be frozen or fertilized in the lab with the sperm of a partner or a donor. Eggs that fertilize and form embryos are frozen and stored for future use if the patient needs them. This process is called in vitro fertilization (IVF).