The first Australian guidance on elective oocyte cryopreservation is calling for the term “social egg freezing” to be dropped.

The expression, used to describe the elective freezing of eggs for later use may “marginalise, stigmatise or attribute social blame to women”, write the authors of the Australian and New Zealand Society of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility (ANZREI) guidance.

While it is commonly thought women primarily freeze their eggs so they can pursue a career or educational goals, this is not the main motivator, the researchers write in the ANZ Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology.

“[Instead] the most common motivation cited by women who choose to freeze eggs is their single status coupled with their strong desire for future motherhood.”