ALL IN THE FAMILY - SOCIAL PROCESSES IN OVARIAN EGG DONATION BETWEEN SISTERS

Interviews and participant observation were conducted at a US infertil ity clinic with women who were attempting to become pregnant with eggs donated by their biological sisters. Sisters who donated eggs were al so followed and interviewed regarding their experiences, as were a num ber of husbands of recipients. Five significant social processes chara cterising the sisters' passage through egg donation are discussed: (1) negotiating dissimilar treatment experiences, (2) communicating cauti ously, (3) interacting in a triad, (4) disclosing to others, and (5) ' gift-giving'. Although participants are generally satisfied with their decision to do sister-to-sister egg donation, the unprecedented proce dure presents a number of difficulties. If sister-to-sister egg donati on as a means to biological motherhood continues in the future, these sociological findings suggest areas in which medical personnel may nee d to provide social and emotional support.