Advice for those not accepted as donors

If you are not accepted as a sperm donor initially, please don’t give up. Your sperm count and quality fluctuates enormously for a variety of reasons including stress, illness and even time of year.

The graph below shows the variation in sperm count for one individual. This man provided samples for testing every two weeks for two years.

Figure taken from the WHO laboratory manual for the examination of human semen and sperm-cervical mucus interaction, Fourth Edition.

The dotted line in the graph represents a ‘normal‘ sperm count of 20 million sperm per millilitre. If this individual had visited the clinic in week 77 or week 83, he would not have been eligible to donate sperm - in fact, he would have been classed as ‘sub-fertile’. However, he is clearly fertile as the majority of his counts are above the ‘normal’ line.

Sperm can be a good indicator of general health and it is worth remembering that each sperm’s life cycle is about 90 days. Therefore, illness or changes in lifestyle are reflected in samples up to three months later.

If we are not able to accept you as a sperm donor, we discuss with you all of your results, including blood and urine, and organise a referral to a doctor if necessary.