Recent studies exploring diversity in the U.S. donor pool

Different racial and ethnic groups have distinct concerns about donation

Several studies published this year explore donor pool diversity (mostly for sperm) in the United States.

Hobbs et al. (2024) compared the racial and ethnic makeup of sperm donors at 18 US sperm banks to that of the general US population and to recipients of donor sperm treatments. They found significant differences, with Black and Hispanic donors being underrepresented compared to the US population, suggesting a need for more diverse recruitment in sperm donation.

Tsai et al. (2022) compared the racial and ethnic make up of oocyte donors from 12 US egg banks to that of the general US population and to recipients of donor egg treatments. Black donors were underrepresented compared with US women (8.9% vs. 14.0%) and oocyte recipients (8.9% vs. 10.8%). Although the proportion of Asian donors was similar to that of US women (7.7% vs. 7.1%), Asian donors were underrepresented compared with donor oocyte recipients (7.7% vs. 10.6%).

Passarelli et al. (2024) analyzed demographic data from 1,724 sperm donors at the Seattle Sperm Bank to understand how well donor diversity matches the U.S. population. The researchers found significant disparities, with White donors making up 74% of donors compared to 58% of the U.S. population, while African American donors made up only 1.4% compared to 12% of the population.

Mebane et al. (2024) found that patients looking for Black donors had more difficulty finding suitable donors, were less satisfied with their options, and had lower success rates in achieving pregnancy compared to those seeking white donors, highlighting a need for greater racial diversity in donor gamete banks and fertility clinics.

Anderson et al. (2024) surveyed 184 potential sperm donors from diverse backgrounds to understand why there's a lack of diversity among sperm donors in the United States. While most participants were open to donating for financial compensation (70%) and did not believe sperm donation was ethically wrong (84%), the research revealed significant differences in attitudes across racial groups. Black respondents showed higher levels of medical system mistrust, discomfort with donation, and concern about donating to families of different backgrounds, and Hispanic respondents expressed more concern about potential child support obligations.

Jones et al. (2024) also explored what factors might prevent people from donating sperm and how these factors vary by ethnic background. In a survey of 1,450 men, White and Hispanic men were most worried about being legally or financially responsible for any children born from their donations. Black men's biggest concern was the idea of having children they would never know about. They were also more concerned than other groups about whether their lifestyle (like smoking or drinking) would affect their ability to donate, and about the time commitment involved. Asian men’s biggest worry was that their spouse or partner wouldn't want them to donate. They were also uniquely concerned about their donor children being raised separately from their other children.

In a large cross-sectional survey of 784 U.S. adults, Mortimer et al. (2024) found that while 64% of men and 50% of women reported theoretical willingness to donate gametes, only 4.6% would actually consider donating to unknown infertility patients and 11.1% would consider donating to a friend or family member. Most preferred to donate for research purposes instead. Financial well-being was not strongly associated with donation preferences. Black/African American women were less likely to consider donating eggs but more likely to desire higher compensation. Primary concerns preventing donation included worries about having unknown biological children (67.7% of men, 35.5% of women) and medical risks (32.2% of women).

Through focus groups with Black cisgender men, King et al. (2024) investigated attitudes toward sperm donation. They found complex attitudes shaped by deep medical mistrust, lack of awareness of sperm donation and how to access sperm banks, and societal concerns, including worries about people selecting specific traits to create "D1 babies" (likely referring to athletic recruitment) and reinforcing negative stereotypes about Black fatherhood.

Park et al. (2024) examined why potential egg and sperm donors were rejected from donor programs by reviewing 2,771 applications over a two-year period from 2022-2023. The research found that nearly one-fourth (23.7%) of applicants were disqualified based on their personal or family medical history, with mental health issues (20%), cancer (19.6%), neurological conditions (11.9%), limited medical history (11.9%), and cardiovascular problems (8.5%) being the top reasons for rejection. Autoimmune diseases were a top reason for rejecting egg donors.

Citations

Anderson, O. G., Taylor, M. A., Naik, H., Isley, L., & Lee Hornberger, K. (2024). Investigating social factors contributing to the lack of diversity among sperm donors in the US. Fertility and Sterility, 122(4), e61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.07.237

Hobbs, C. L., Gadson, A. K., Sadikman, S., Tsai, S., Enemuo, F., Raker, C., & Eaton, J. L. (2024). An investigation of racial and ethnic disparities in donor sperm availability in the United States. Fertility and Sterility, 122(3), 474-481. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.05.142

Jones, C. A., Brass, N., McEnness, J., Isley, L., Zucaro, A., & Di Berardino, T. (2024). Top considerations of potential sperm donors by ethnic background: How can we improve donor recruitment, screening, and education? Fertility and Sterility, 122(4), e173-e174. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.07.600

King, K. L., Watkins, D., Nangia, A., Fantus, R. J., & Marsh, C. A. (2024). Attitudes towards sperm donation in black cisgender men. Fertility and Sterility, 122(4), e74-e75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.07.274

Mebane, S., Harris, B. S., Woodward, J., Brucker, A., Erkanli, A., Nagle, C., Steele, D., & Neal, S. (2024). A survey study evaluating donor gamete utilization rates, patient satisfaction, and fertility treatment outcomes according to desired race and ethnicity. Fertility and Sterility. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.06.017

Mortimer, R. M., Waldman, I. N., Leader, J. E., Lee, M. S., Ginsburg, E. S., & Lanes, A. (2024). Predictors of gamete donation: A cross sectional survey study. Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics, 41(1), 2327-2336. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10815-024-03194-7

Park, J., Baldwin, K., & Isley, L. (2024). Top clinical indications in excluded sperm and oocyte donor applicants’ personal and family medical histories: How can we improve our donor screening and better understand risk assessment barriers? Fertility and Sterility, 122(4), e395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.08.205

Passarelli, R., Kauderer, S., Pfail, J. L., & Velez, D. (2024). Characteristics of sperm donors in the United States. Fertility and Sterility, 122(4), e47-e48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2024.07.205

Tsai S, Chung EH, Truong T, Farrell AS, Wu J, Ohamadike O, Eaton JL. Racial and ethnic disparities among donor oocyte banks in the United States. Fertil Steril. 2022 Mar;117(3):622-628. doi: 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2021.12.015.