Could Miscarriages Be Prevented With A £100 Hormone Gel?

Miscarriages affect around 25 per cent of women – but hearing how common they are doesn’t make them any easier to cope with.

However, a hormone gel could give women prone to miscarriages hope.

Containing the hormone ‘progesterone’, the gel thickens the lining of the womb to help implant the embryo and support the baby as he grows.

But while it’s routinely prescribed for women in Italy and France who have suffered miscarriages, it’s not available here in the UK.

Success Story
One British mum decided to take matters into her own hands and paid to use the vaginal gel to boost her chances of carrying her baby to term.

Following the birth of her son Zachary, now three, Danielle Diamond, suffered three miscarriages.

She had low levels of progesterone and wanted to use the gel containing the hormone to give her baby every possible chance. But doctors told her that the gel is given solely to IVF patients in the UK.

“A lot of women blame themselves for miscarriages but I think this is such a simple answer to help these people,” says Ms Diamond.

When Ms Diamond fell pregnant for a fourth time, she pushed her GP to give her the hormone. She managed to get a letter of approval from her miscarriage consultant and paid £100 to use the vaginal gel. After using the gel during the first four months of pregnancy, she gave birth to a healthy baby girl last November.  

“On forums I found people who had gone to IVF wards and begged people who had leftover prescriptions to sell them to them,” says Ms Diamond. “It seems like common sense to prescribe people with progesterone if they need it. I don’t want anybody to go through what I did if it can be avoided.”

A UK-based trial is currently looking into whether the hormone gel should be available in the UK for women who’ve miscarried more than three times.

Professor Ellis Downes, a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at London’s Portland Hospital for Women and Children, says the hormone is “perfectly safe” and whether or not it’s used should be judged on each individual case.

“On this occasion, it is great that the progesterone helped the patient,” says Downes. “I am a fan of progesterone and use it for many patients who have had recurrent miscarriage and also undergoing certain aspects of fertility treatment.

“My personal feeling is that, until there is definitive rigorous evidence that progesterone has been shown in randomised clinical trials to reduce the risk of miscarriage and improve the outcome of pregnancy, then it should not be widely prescribed.

“Hopefully when we do get results of the trial we will know one way or another whether progesterone has a role in this very important and sad area.”

If you’ve been affected by a miscarriage, get in touch with the Miscarriage Association for all of the information and support you need.

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