Friday 10.30-11.15
The Basics. What you need to know to get pregnant and how to prepare for pregnancy.
With an overview of fertility and the biological clock, this session will go through the basics about getting pregnant, hormones and how the body works. Presented by Charles Kingsland, Clinical Director of the Hewitt Centre for Reproduction and a hugely popular speaker from last year, Charles will also cover lifestyle changes important for pregnancy such as smoking, drinking and optimizing your weight.

Friday 12.30-13.15
A beginners guide to the fertility rollercoaster - what to expect.
If you are about to start fertility treatment for the first time, you may have heard that emotionally and physically, you are in for a bumpy time. In this talk by Julian Norman-Taylor, Consultant Gynaecologist at the Assisted Conception Unit at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, he describes what’s involved, what to expect and how to prepare yourself for the journey ahead.

Friday 15.45 - 16.30
Boost fertility and prevent miscarriage with nutrition.
Find out how nutrition can help you get pregnant and also prevent miscarriages. Come to this talk to discover the best diet, supplements and lifestyle factors to maximise your chances of getting, and staying, pregnant. How also to improve your chances for a successful IVF and how nutrition can help if you have been diagnosed with an immunological problem. Dr Marilyn Glenville PhD is the UK's leading nutritionist specialising in women's health, she is the Former President of the Food and Health Forum at the Royal Society of Medicine and also the author of the book “Getting Pregnant Faster". www.marilynglenville.com

Saturday 10.30-11.15
An overview of the common causes of infertility and the main approaches to treatment.
If you’ve been trying to conceive for a while without success, this session could help you decide on your next steps. Looking at some of the main reasons why couples fail to conceive, Charles Kingsland, Clinical Director of the Hewitt Centre for Reproduction, will cover the basic areas of testing used to identify common causes of infertility and offer an overview of the range of treatments available at specialist fertility clinics.

Saturday 11.30-12.15
How To Get Pregnant (and to have the best possible pregnancy).
Whether you've just decided to try to get pregnant, have been trying for a while, or are about to have IVF, fertility and pregnancy expert Zita West explains how to combine the latest medical thinking with practical advice on nutrition, emotional and psychological management and complementary therapies, to maximise your chances of conceiving successfully and achieving a happy and healthy pregnancy.

Saturday 12.30-13.15
A patient’s experience of the fertility rollercoaster and what to expect.
If you are about to start fertility treatment for the first time, prepare yourself for the physical and emotional ups and downs ahead with this talk by Rachel Watson, Chair of the national charity and patient support group Infertility Network UK and mother of a 6 year old son conceived through IVF. Rachel outlines her experiences following early onset menopause and offers practical advice following 4 years of treatment and 3 cycles of IVF. Some of her tips for survival? Knowledge is power – be prepared to challenge – have a plan B.

Saturday 12.30-13.15
Testing your fertility and the value of your ovarian reserve.
Just because a woman has plenty of eggs it doesn’t mean she is fertile, particularly if her fallopian tubes are blocked. If you’ve been trying to conceive for a while without success, or maybe haven’t started yet but want to test your ovarian reserve (the number of eggs remaining), this talk by Carole Gilling-Smith, Medical Director of the Brighton-based Agora Fertility Clinic, explains what medical investigations there are available, what they can (and can’t) tell you about your fertility and how to go about them. 

Saturday 13.30-14.15
Boost fertility and prevent miscarriage with nutrition.
Find out how nutrition can help you get pregnant and also prevent miscarriages. Come to this talk to discover the best diet, supplements and lifestyle factors to maximise your chances of getting, and staying, pregnant. How also to improve your chances for a successful IVF and how nutrition can help if you have been diagnosed with an immunological problem. Dr Marilyn Glenville PhD is the UK's leading nutritionist specialising in women's health, she is the Former President of the Food and Health Forum at the Royal Society of Medicine and also the author of the book “Getting Pregnant Faster". www.marilynglenville.com

Friday 11.30-12.15
Finding egg donors in the UK
There's a shortage of egg donors in the UK leading many who need one to seek treatment abroad. But if this isn't for you, there are ways to find donors in the UK. A number of fertility clinics run egg sharing programmes where those undergoing fertility treatment share their eggs in exchange for reduced costs. Alternatively, one can advertise. In this talk Sarah Templeman, who heads the egg sharing programme at Herts and Essex Fertility Centre, explains how it works whilst Laura Witjens, chair of the National Gamete Donation Trust, a charity formed to help overcome donor shortages, offers some pointers on how to find one with the help of the NGDT without cost.

Friday 11.30-12.15
Preparing for IVF
Embarking on IVF can be very demanding and stressful. Fertility and pregnancy expert, Zita West, shows how getting the right physical, nutritional, and emotional support, before and during treatment, and incorporating different complementary therapies can help to off-set these stresses and strains, enhance your overall well-being and improve your chances of success.

Friday 11.45-12.30
How to choose a fertility clinic.
There are many factors to consider when choosing a clinic and getting the right fit is just as essential as comparing success rates. Kate Brian, journalist, broadcaster, author of bestselling The Complete Guide to IVF and, as mother of two IVF children has been through it all herself, guides you through the issues from analysing costs and using the mass of data available on the HFEA website to compare success rates, to looking at a clinic's location and culture, specialisations and waiting times.

Friday 12.45-13.30
Improving the odds of IVF success with metabolomics and genetic screening. (NB Speaker change)
Newspapers regularly feature stories on medical advances in fertility treatment. Recently these have included ways of improving success rates for IVF by using new technologies to select the highest quality embryos. Dr Anna Carby, fertility specialist with the IVF unit at Hammersmith Hospital, outlines their experience in this field and how they have used them to improve results in situations of poor response.

Friday 14.30-15.15
Immunology – controversial treatment, does it work?
Reproductive immunology is a form of fertility treatment based on the belief that repeated IVF failures and miscarriages can be caused by the body’s immune system rejecting a pregnancy. According to the HFEA website, treatments for immunology carry risks, potential side effects and there’s little scientific evidence to show they work. George Ndukwe, Consultant Gynaecologist and Medical Director of the new Zita West IVF Clinic, one of only a handful of fertility professionals in the UK with much experience in immunology, explains how it works, what's involved and presents the case.

Friday 14.45-15.30
Fertility Surgery - offering an alternative to IVF or improving the chance of success of IVF (NB speaker change and slightly revised topic)
Fertility surgery can help you to conceive naturally by treating pathology such as blocked tubes, ovarian cysts, fibroids and Asherman's syndrome, if that is the only problem you have. Where there may be multiple factors present, surgical treatment of hydrosalpinx, fibroids and other conditions may increase your chance of success. Treatment can be available through NHS or private medical insurance if you have gynaecological symptoms as well. Adrian Lower, Consultant Gynaecologist, Fertility Specialist and Medical Director of the London Fibroid Clinic outlines the scope for surgical management.

Friday 15.30-16.15
Complementary Medicine - can it boost fertility?
Often, fertility-boosting claims made by complementary practitioners are questioned by the medical profession who assert the need for evidence-based procedures. However in this talk by Michael Dooley, NHS Consultant Gynaecologist, medical director of The Poundbury Clinic which is based in London and Dorset and BMI The Winterbourne Hospital Fertility Unit and author of Fit For Fertility, Michael advocates the use of complementary techniques alongside, in addition to and sometimes instead of conventional medicine.

Saturday 11.30-12.15
New techniques in IVF – sources for hope?
There are a number of emerging technologies in the field of IVF which claim improved success rates but can make treatment more expensive and could require changing clinics. Simon Fishel, Managing Director of Care Fertility, an organisation very much involved in developing new areas of IVF science, explains what some of these new treatments like IMSI, array CGS, in vitro maturation and others do, as well as provides an indication of their effectiveness.

Saturday 11.45-12.30
Improving the odds of IVF working for you.
It was only in 1978 that the world’s first IVF baby was born in the UK. However more than 30 years later, less than 1 in 3 cycles of IVF are actually successful. Yacoub Khalaf, Consultant Gynaecologist and Medical Director of the Assisted Conception Unit at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS, explains what is understood to influence the success or failure of an IVF cycle including some of those factors within a patient’s control.

Saturday 14.30-15.15
Issues for families created with donors
If you are hoping to use donated sperm, eggs or embryos to start your family, then the issues of what, when and how to tell a child about their genetic origin becomes crucial. This can be even more complicated with the use of anonymous overseas donors. Olivia Montuschi who runs DC Network, an organisation of 1,500 families created with the help of donors, is joined by a donor conceived person to discuss being open with children in these cases.

Saturday 15.30-16.15
Complementary and Alternative Medicine – can it boost your fertility?
Claims for many complementary medicines have been made, by practitioners and patients alike, as miracle cures for infertility. But amongst the medical profession there is much discussion over the lack of evidence supporting these claims. Michael Dooley, NHS Consultant Gynaecologist and Medical Director of The Poundbury Clinic, which advocates the use of a range of complementary techniques, chairs this session with an introduction outlining some of the views of the medical profession, whilst Dr Xiao-Ping Zhai who practices Traditional Chinese Medicine at The Zhai Clinic and Sarah Holland who supports patients with EFT, present their experiences in helping those who have struggled to conceive.

Friday 10.45-11.30
Fertility treatment for older women. (Repeated Saturday)
A woman’s ability to conceive reduces with age especially after the age of 40. In this talk Simon Thornton, Consultant Gynaecologist, one of the founders of the CARE Fertility Clinics, and Mark Sedler, Consultant Gynaecologist, CARE Manchester, outline the issues relating to compromised ovarian reserve and discuss the options and new chromosome screening techniques that can boost fertility and improve success rates for women over 40.

Friday 12.30-13.15
Dealing with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)
PCOS is a common cause of infertility in women and particularly common among women with ovulation problems. Dr Magdy Asaad, Clinical Director of the London Fertility Centre and a fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, talks about what is known about PCOS and the most effective ways of investigating and treating it.

Friday 13.30-14.15
PCOS -  How to treat PCOS with nutrition and natural remedies.
There is overwhelming evidence that diet plays a significant role in the treatment of PCOS.  Come to this talk to find out how you can help yourself to not only reduce your symptoms but also boost your fertility.  This talk will cover the best diet, vitamins and minerals and herbs for PCOS.  Learn about reversing insulin resistance naturally, how stress can affect PCOS and what exercise is the best. Dr Marilyn Glenville PhD is the UK's leading nutritionist specialising in women's health, she is the Former President of the Food and Health Forum at the Royal Society of Medicine and also the author of the book ‘Getting Pregnant Faster’ and ‘Fat around the Middle’.www.marilynglenville.com.

Friday 13.30-14.15
Stopping your Biological Clock - Egg freezing and the chance to have a ‘late’ baby safely
In the last 12 months the UK's first two babies were born from eggs that had previously been frozen using the vitrification technique. Flash frozen in under a minute, vitrified eggs have a 95% chance of surviving, transforming outcomes and increasing the chance for women to "preserve" their fertility until they meet the right partner. Dr Gillian Lockwood, Medical Director of Midland Fertility Services, the clinic that achieved these livebirths, and spokesperson on ethics for the British Fertility Society, outlines the issues, how it works and what’s realistic.

Friday 14.45-15.30
Dealing with Recurrent Miscarriage
Recurrent miscarriage (ie when miscarriage occurs 3 or more times) is highly distressing and affects 1 in every 100 women. And yet most couples who have faced it still have a good chance of a successful birth in the future. Paul Serhal, Medical Director of The Centre for Reproductive and Genetic Health and Senior Lecturer at University College London Hospital, talks about what we know about the reasons behind recurrent miscarriages and the most effective ways of investigating and treating it.

Friday 15.45-16.30
Endometriosis - enhancing your fertility - a nutritional path to support reproduction
Dian Shepperson Mills is a world renowned nutritional therapist who runs The Endometriosis and Fertility Clinic. In this talk she outlines how nutrition can help to support women with endometriosis overcome the pain, infertility and exhaustion associated with this disease. Dian will explain how sound nutrition can also help couples achieve a better chance of natural conception or improve the chances of assisted pregnancies.

Friday 16.45-17.30
Sperm banks - how do they work?
Craig is Caucasion/Scandinavian with blue eyes and brown hair. He is 176cm and weighs 83kg. So says the website of Denmark-based European Sperm Bank (ESB), who sell the sperm of a large list of donors to fertility patients throughout  Europe including the UK. But for women who need a sperm donor - single women, lesbian couples or those who can't use their partner's sperm - how does it work, what are the consequences and how should one plan to explain this to children conceived from donor sperm. Peter Bower of ESB is the speaker.

Saturday 10.45-11.30 (THIS TALK IS REPEATED ON FRIDAY at 10.45)
Fertility treatment for older women.
A woman’s ability to conceive reduces with age especially after the age of 40. In this talk Simon Thornton, Consultant Gynaecologist, one of the founders of the CARE Fertility Clinics, and Mark Sedler, Consultant Gynaecologist, CARE Manchester, outline the issues relating to compromised ovarian reserve and discuss the options and new chromosome screening techniques that can boost fertility and improve success rates for women over 40.

Saturday 11.45-12.30
Dealing with, and treating, Endometriosis
Endometriosis is a common condition in which the cells which normally line the uterus implant around the outside of the uterus and/or ovaries, causing internal bleeding and pain. It's affects up to 2 million women in the UK and can substantially reduce fertility. Whilst there is no "cure", there are different treatments. Haitham Hamoda, Consultant Gynaecologist in reproductive medicine and surgery at King's College Hospital, talks through the issues and outlines what can be done to preserve or restore fertility.

Saturday 12.45-13.30
International Surrogacy
Earlier this year, Channel 4 aired a controversial documentary called Google Baby which followed the journey of embryos, created in a United States fertility clinic from donor sperm and eggs, to India where they were implanted into local surrogates. Dr Gad Lavy who runs New England Fertility, the IVF clinic featured in the film, talks about what's involved in international surrogacy whilst Louisa Ghevaert, partner specialising in fertility and parenting law at UK solicitors Porter Dodson, discusses the complicated legal aspects involved with such arrangements.

Saturday 13.30-14.15
Reduced ovarian reserve: Is anyone too difficult to treat?
As medical techniques improve, so the boundaries of those who can be helped to conceive through reproductive medicine seem to widen. Seemingly, age and a host of medical conditions now offer no barriers to parenthood. Yet still, many thousands struggle to conceive even after years of stressful and expensive treatment. What are the boundaries of reproductive medicine today and can anyone be treated and any problem overturned? Sam Abdalla, Director of the Lister Fertility Clinic, explains.

Saturday 14.45-15.30
Single women and lesbian couples - options for conceiving.
What are the routes open to women who want to conceive without having sex with a man? Dr Carole Gilling-Smith, Medical Director of the Agora Fertility Clinic, explains the practical issues around getting pregnant with donor sperm, including IUI and IVF, whilst Natalie Woods, a lesbian patient of Carole’s who became a mother after treatment and is also a fertility counsellor, goes into some of the issues discussed in counselling as well as providing a patient’s perspective.

Friday 13.45-14.30
Improving male fertility through nutritional health and lifestyle changes
There's plenty of evidence suggesting that improving lifestyle, diet, stress levels and exercise can impact on both men and women's fertility, all of which are complimentary to IVF and surgical treatments. In this talk, nutritionist Juliet Wilson goes into the detail of how managing these factors can improve a man's sperm count, motility and quality, and offers a fertility-boosting action plan.

Friday 15.30-16.15
What men need to know about their fertility - testing it, boosting it, treating it. (Repeated Saturday)
It is often women who carry the shame and worry of infertility and yet men are a significant cause of problems in nearly half of all cases. A low sperm count or poor quality sperm, obstructions or mechanical difficulties can all be problems for those struggling to conceive. In this talk Dr Allan Pacey, Senior Lecturer in Andrology at the University of Sheffield, outlines the potential problems, how to test for them, how male fertility might be boosted or treated.

Friday 16.30-17.15 (download presentation)
Sex, drugs and rock and roll - the impact on a man's sperm.
If you've been caning it for a while and now wonder whether the effects of previous smoking, drinking and drugs are behind your difficulties in starting a family, this talk by Sheena Lewis, Professor of Reproductive Medicine and specialist in new tests for sperm analysis at Queen's University Belfast, will shed some light on the damage that might have been caused and what you can do about it. 

Saturday 13.45-14.30
Infertility for men - a male perspective.
It's not widely understood that male factors, such as low sperm count or motility, are present in nearly half of all instances of infertility in the UK. Nigel Dawson, husband to top Fertility Show speaker Nicola, Infertility Network UK volunteer and father to two beautiful daughters born following fertility treatment in Spain, talks about his experiences on their journey to start a family, through several failed cycles of IVF and then successful donor egg/donor sperm treatment, offering a distinctly male perspective on the issues they had to confront.

Saturday 15.30-16.15
What men need to know about their fertility - testing it, boosting it, treating it.
It is often women who carry the shame and worry of infertility and yet men are a significant cause of problems in nearly half of all cases. A low sperm count or poor quality sperm, obstructions or mechanical difficulties can all be problems for those struggling to conceive. In this talk Dr Allan Pacey, Senior Lecturer in Andrology at the University of Sheffield, outlines the potential problems, how to test for them, how male fertility might be boosted or treated.

Saturday 10.30-11.15
IVF treatment abroad - an individual's perspective.
UK fertility patients often cite price, waiting times and the availability of donors behind their reasons to seek treatment abroad. As more and more Brits head off to overseas clinics, we hear from Nicola Dawson, a very popular speaker from previous years, as to why she decided on treatment in Spain after several unsuccessful attempts in the UK and the emotions and practicalities she faced before successful treatment led to the birth of her twin daughters. 

Saturday 14.45-15.30 - NEW!
Going abroad for treatment? Question time featuring 2 overseas clinics
As more and more Brits head abroad for fertility treatment - often driven by the availability of donors, prices, waiting times or treatments not available in the UK - selecting a clinic overseas can feel like wandering into the unknown. Come to this session with your list of questions for representatives from 2 different clinics – Dr. Verónica Lucas of Spanish based Clinique Ginefiv and Dr Julio Pabon of the US based Fertility Center and Applied Genetics of Florida - who between them deal with hundreds of British patients every year and who hope to allay your fears. Chaired by Kate Brian, journalist, broadcaster and author of bestselling The Complete Guide to IVF.

Saturday 15.45-16.30
Treatment abroad for the reluctant traveller.
Probably the most often cited reason for going abroad for treatment is the scarcity of donor eggs in the UK. But there are risks with overseas clinics, namely that they may not necessarily be regulated to the same high standards as those in the UK and that, following treatment, one's consultant is a long way away. Create Health Clinics is one of a number of UK fertility clinics, regulated by the HFEA, who operates a scheme whereby they send patients who need donor eggs to clinics with whom they have a relationship in Cyprus but essentially retain responsibility for patient care throughout the process. CREATE's Medical Director, Geeta Nargund, explains the benefits to patients.

Friday 10.45-11.30
How to improve your chances of obtaining treatment on the NHS. (I N UK Workshop)
Huge variations in access criteria a postcode lottery, arbitrary PCT rules, endless waiting, bureaucratic restrictions – all faced by those seeking treatment on the NHS. In this interactive workshop, Clare Lewis-Jones MBE of patient support charity Infertility Network UK sets out the current situation across the UK, offers ways of navigating through the system and tackles questions from the floor.

Friday 12.45-13.30
Treatment on the NHS - a success story
Effie Moss and her husband Clive tried to conceive for 7 years before the birth of their beautiful baby girl last year following a second cycle of IVF-ICSI, paid for by the NHS. Setbacks included dealing with the aftermath of Clive's testicular cancer, initially failing NHS criteria on both BMI and FSH levels, poor response to fertility treatment, producing only 1 embryo during both cycles and a host of other emotional ups and downs that, in Effie's words, "no one prepares you for". Effie now tweets regularly to help others in the same situation. Come along to this talk to be inspired by her story.

Saturday 14.30-15.15
An insiders guide to getting the most out of the NHS.
Anil Gudi and Amit Shah, Consultant Gynaecologists who run the NHS fertility service at the Homerton Fertility Centre in East London, offer some helpful tips on how to fast track your fertility treatment on the NHS. Be well informed and better armed.

Friday 10.30-11.15
IVF - a survivor's guide
During research for her book, IVF: AN EMOTIONAL COMPANION, Brigid Moss, Health Director of RED Magazine, interviewed scores of women about their experiences of infertility and IVF, and experts for their professional advice too. They gave her tons of good advice on getting through IVF, which Brigid found invaluable in her final cycle. Here, she shares their best advice.

Friday 11.45-12.30
Dealing with family and friends. (I N UK Workshop)
The fertility journey, with its disappointments and setbacks, is painful enough without constantly having to answer questions and deal with assumptions from people close to you. In this interactive workshop, Sharon Davidson of patient support charity Infertility Network UK offers some advice on what, when and how much, if any to tell people and asks for your experiences from the floor.

Friday 16.30-17.15
Managing relationships through infertility
The stresses and strains of coping with, and treating, infertility put a terrible pressure on relationships. It impacts on sex, daily life, expectations of support, overcoming difficulties and can take a lot of the joy and fun away. Jennifer Hunt, senior infertility counsellor with Hammersmith IVF and former chair of the British Infertility Counsellors Association, offers some strategies on working together. 

Friday 17.30-18.00
Dealing with work issues. (I N UK Workshop)
What, if anything, do you tell your employer and work colleagues when you’re going through fertility treatment, how much time off, support and understanding should you expect and how do you manage your career and retain confidentiality through the ups and downs. In this interactive workshop, Susan Seenan of patient support charity Infertility Network UK talks through the issues, reviews good employer practice, offers some guidance and invites questions from the floor.

Saturday 10.45-11.30
Coping strategies. (I N UK Workshop)
Anger, shock, disbelief, shame, envy, loss of control, loneliness and isolation – all emotions that those undertaking fertility treatment may have to endure. In this interactive workshop, Sharon Davidson of patient support charity Infertility Network UK offers some coping strategies, and ways of looking after you when things get difficult and invites feedback and questions from the floor.

Saturday 13.45-14.30
Managing the effect of infertility on relationships. (I N UK Workshop)
The fertility journey can put huge pressure and stress on relationships, can cause communication problems and even be the cause of total relationship breakdown. In this interactive workshop, fertility counsellor Tracey Sainsbury, of patient support charity Infertility Network UK sets out the key problems, the importance of counselling and support and invites questions from the floor.

Friday 14.30-15.15
Adopting in the UK. What’s involved?
For many people who can’t conceive, adoption offers an alternative and hugely rewarding way to start or add to their family. In this talk a senior social worker from Brent Adoption Service, part of Brent Borough Council, gives an outline of adopting in the UK, looks at the things potential adopters should consider and offers a few pointers on what to do to start the process.

Friday 16.45-17.30
Why should I give it another go?
If you’ve been through several cycles of fertility treatment without success, you may well be thinking carefully about whether you are prepared to undergo another round of emotional, physical and financial hardship. In this talk Yacoub Khalaf, Consultant Gynaecologist and Medical Director of the Assisted Conception Unit at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS, goes through some of the science and the statistics to offer encouragement and support and to give you a few reasons why you might.

Friday 17.30-18.00
When and how to eventually stop treatment and coming to terms with facing childlessness. (I N UK Workshop)
If fertility treatment hasn’t worked there may come a point when a line must be drawn. When do you make that difficult decision? How do you reach it and when should you start to accept the possibility of living involuntarily childless? In this interactive workshop Sheena Young of patient support charity Infertility Network UK sets out a roadmap to try and reach some conclusions and invites feedback and questions from the floor.

Saturday 15.45-16.30
International adoption - tips from someone who's done it.
Cecile Trijssenaar had three unsuccessful IVF cycles before being told she couldn't adopt a child from the UK. After an international adoption process lasting nearly 6 years, she brought back her beautiful son from Russia which prompted her to set up a website advising other prospective parents on how to do it. In this talk Cecile relays her experiences and offers some advice for those embarking on this journey.