IVF

Wolfson Fertility Centre at Hammersmith Hospital

The Wolfson Fertility Centre, established by Professor Lord Robert Winston in 1982, provides one of the first and largest fertility services in the UK. We offer a comprehensive range of fertility options including in-vitro fertilisation (IVF), intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and reproductive surgery. Since the Centre opened we have been at the cutting edge of reproductive medicine and fertility treatments, having been the first to perform many of the treatments that are now standard across the world, such as pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). Our close association with Imperial College London allows us to offer our patients pioneering treatments and technology.  

We work closely with colleagues in other specialties at the Trust and our range of specialist fertility services includes treatment for medically complex cases and fertility preservation prior to chemotherapy.

The service is led by Mr Rehan Salim, consultant gynaecologist and head of reproductive medicine, and supported by consultants, Miss Lisa Webber, Miss Monica Mittal and Mr Raj Rai. The doctors are internationally renowned in their field.

If you are considering IVF treatment at the Wolfson Fertility Centre, we invite you to attend one of our open evenings to find out more about our service.

Conditions and treatments

Our service cares for people who are trying to conceive children. We offer the following services:

Diagnostic tests

• Pre-implantation genetic diagnoses (PGD)
• Hormone profile (complete endocrine assessment)
• Ultrasound (including 3D)
• Saline sonography
• Hysterosalpingogram (HSG)
• Hysterosalpingo-contrast-sonography (HyCoSy)
• Semen analysis
• Laparoscopy
• Hysteroscopy

Treatments

• Ovulation induction (clomiphene and gonadotropin) 
• Intrauterine insemination (IUI) 
• In-vitro fertilisation (IVF) 
• Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI)
• Testicular sperm extraction (TESE) 
• Microsurgical epididymal sperm aspiration (MESA) 
• Reproductive surgery (including fibroids, endometriosis, Asherman's syndrome, tubal surgery)

Fertility preservation

We provide a rapid access fertility preservation service for men and women who have been diagnosed with cancer. We see patients quickly to ensure their cancer treatment is not delayed.

Counselling service

We have a dedicated counsellor within the IVF service for people undergoing fertility diagnosis and treatment. Our counsellor is a senior member of the British Infertility Counselling Association and can support you during your IVF treatment.

Additional information

Success rates

It's extremely difficult to compare clinic success rates fairly. This is because success rates depend on the patients being treated and the reason for their infertility. 

In addition, some clinics specialise in treating people with certain types of infertility or older women who are less likely to be successful, which will impact on their rate. That’s why the HFEA recommend you consider all the issues that matter to you – from opening hours to counselling provision – when choosing a clinic and not rely solely on the data. 

At the Wolfson Fertility Centre, we are proud of our high success rates.  

Our figures (below) show the percentage of pregnancies that happened as a result of fresh and frozen embryo transfers during 2022 – this data is gathered through a system called PRISM and is reviewed by the HFEA before publication on their Choose a Fertility Clinic page through their website (which can be found here -  Choose a fertility clinic | HFEA)

	All transfers	Transfers for patients aged 38 and over	Transfer for patients aged under 38
Number of embryos transferred	1166	514	652
Number of live birth events	264	67	197
Births per embryo transferred	23%	13%	30%
Sector average	28%	17%	33%

 

	All transfers	Transfers for patients aged 38 and over	Transfer for patients aged under 38
Multiple birth rates	4%	4%	4%
Sector average	4%	4%	4%

If you would like further information about our success rates please contact us.  

The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Association (HFEA) 

HFEA is the UK independent regulator of fertility treatment and provides information about fertility clinics and their success rates. The HFEA website uses various statistics so you can compare different clinics. When looking on the HFEA website, consider the time period, age group and type of cycle, and whether you are looking at pregnancy rates or the number of births by embryo transferred. The HFEA is currently updating its data publication method and so the data available may be outdated until the new methodology and data has been verified – this data is due for publication in 2025. 

Imperial Private Healthcare

We also offer consultant-led private fertility treatment at Imperial Private Healthcare. If you choose private fertility treatment, you will usually be seen for your first consultation within two weeks and you will have one consultant and one nurse assigned to you throughout your treatment.

For more information on consultant-led private care at the Wolfson Fertility Centre, visit the Imperial Private Healthcare website.

Education

Clinical fellowships and research fellowships are available, as well as short-term training opportunities. If you are interested in an elective placement with our service, please call 020 8383 2372.