Colombia Surrogacy for a 39-Year-Old Woman with Uterine Fibroids: Annie’s Journey from Seattle
Annie was 39 years old, married, and living in the Seattle area when she first contacted us about surrogacy.
Like many women in their late thirties, she had spent years believing there was still enough time. But after being diagnosed with uterine fibroids and discussing pregnancy risks with her doctor, she realized that waiting was no longer the safest option.
Her original plan was to explore surrogacy in the United States. Since she lived in Washington State, U.S. surrogacy felt familiar and legally secure. However, after reviewing the overall cost, timeline, and medical planning involved, Annie began to ask a different question:
Could there be another legal and medically reliable option outside the United States?
That was when Colombia surrogacy became part of the discussion.
Annie’s case was not simply about wanting to avoid pregnancy. She had a real medical concern. Uterine fibroids can sometimes make pregnancy more complicated, depending on their size, location, and effect on the uterine cavity. For some women, fibroids may increase the risk of miscarriage, implantation problems, premature delivery, or pregnancy complications. In Annie’s case, the concern was serious enough that she wanted to protect both her own health and the future baby’s safety.
At the same time, Annie was already 39. Her AMH level was still relatively good for her age, which suggested that her ovarian reserve was not poor. But as I explained to her during our consultation, AMH mainly tells us about egg quantity. It does not guarantee egg quality.
This is one of the most misunderstood points in fertility treatment.
At 39, the biggest challenge is often not how many eggs a woman may produce, but how many of those eggs can become chromosomally normal embryos. Egg quality and embryo genetic normality decline with age, especially after 35 and more clearly after 38. That is why I encouraged Annie to move quickly with IVF, egg retrieval, embryo creation, and embryo freezing.
For women in Annie’s situation, time matters more than supplements, perfect preparation, or waiting for the “right moment.” CoQ10, vitamin D, and other supportive supplements may be helpful, but they cannot replace timely fertility preservation. The most important step is to create embryos while the ovaries can still respond well.
Once Annie understood this, her plan became clearer.
The first priority was not choosing a surrogate immediately. The first priority was to create embryos as soon as possible.
After embryo freezing, Colombia surrogacy could be planned with more flexibility.
Many intended parents worry that frozen embryos may lose quality if they are stored for several years. In reality, with modern vitrification and proper laboratory storage, the length of freezing itself is usually not the main concern. As an embryologist, I have personally thawed embryos that had been frozen for more than 20 years, and healthy babies were born from those embryos. The key is not how long the embryo is frozen, but whether the embryo was good quality before freezing and whether the laboratory handling is professional.
For Annie, this was reassuring.
She did not need to rush into a transfer immediately. She needed to secure embryos first, then plan the surrogacy journey in a legally and medically organized way.
Why Colombia Surrogacy Made Sense for Annie
Annie originally focused on U.S. surrogacy because it is well known and legally established. But U.S. surrogacy can be financially challenging for many families, often requiring a very large total budget when agency fees, surrogate compensation, medical care, legal work, insurance, escrow, and newborn-related costs are included.
Colombia offered Annie a different path.
Colombia has become an increasingly important destination for international intended parents seeking affordable surrogacy. For families who qualify and work with experienced medical and legal teams, Colombia can provide a structured surrogacy process at a significantly lower cost than the United States.
For Annie and her husband, the appeal was not simply the price. It was the combination of medical care, legal planning, embryo transfer options, and a more manageable overall budget.
Colombia also made sense geographically. From Seattle, international travel to Bogotá is manageable, and many U.S.-based intended parents are already comfortable traveling for medical care when the process is well coordinated.
In Annie’s case, the plan was to complete IVF and embryo freezing first, then consider shipping frozen embryos to a fertility clinic in Colombia for a frozen embryo surrogacy process.
This type of planning is especially important for women with uterine fibroids. The embryos may come from the intended mother’s eggs and her husband’s sperm, while the pregnancy is carried by a carefully screened surrogate. This allows the intended parents to have a genetic connection to the child without exposing Annie to the medical risks of carrying the pregnancy herself.
What Annie’s Story Teaches Other Intended Parents
Annie’s story is common among women who contact us in their late thirties.
They may still have acceptable ovarian reserve. They may still look healthy. They may still feel that pregnancy is possible. But when a uterine condition such as fibroids, adenomyosis, severe scarring, repeated miscarriage, or other medical risks enters the picture, the decision becomes more complex.
For these women, the question is not only, “Can I get pregnant?”
The better question may be:
“Is it safe for me to carry a pregnancy, and how much time do I really have to create healthy embryos?”
That is why early planning is so important.
A 39-year-old woman with uterine fibroids who is considering surrogacy should usually think in this order:
First, evaluate ovarian reserve and reproductive timeline.
Second, create embryos as soon as possible if she hopes to use her own eggs.
Third, consider PGT-A testing to identify chromosomally normal embryos.
Fourth, choose a safe and legally organized surrogacy destination.
Fifth, plan embryo shipping, surrogate matching, legal documents, pregnancy monitoring, birth registration, and newborn exit documents in advance.
For Annie, Colombia surrogacy became an option because it gave her a way to protect her health, preserve her fertility potential, and pursue parenthood with a more manageable budget.
A Practical Option for U.S. Intended Parents
For U.S. intended parents, Colombia surrogacy is not the same as doing surrogacy locally. It requires careful coordination, experienced legal support, and a clinic that understands international cases.
But for many families, especially those facing high U.S. surrogacy costs, Colombia can be a serious alternative.
The most important point is that surrogacy should never be treated as a shortcut. It is a medical, legal, emotional, and financial journey. The quality of the clinic, the surrogate screening process, the legal structure, and the post-birth documentation all matter.
Annie’s journey started with uncertainty, but after one detailed consultation, she understood the most important message:
At 39, she could not afford to wait.
Her first step was to create embryos. Her second step was to plan Colombia surrogacy carefully.
For many women in similar situations, that sequence may make all the difference.
If you are a woman in your late thirties or early forties with uterine fibroids, recurrent miscarriage, adenomyosis, previous uterine surgery, or another medical reason to consider surrogacy, Colombia surrogacy may be an option worth exploring.
At Canbaby, we help intended parents understand the medical reality, compare surrogacy destinations, coordinate IVF and embryo freezing, and plan Colombia surrogacy with experienced fertility and legal teams.
For families like Annie and her husband in Seattle, the goal is not only to have a baby.
The goal is to choose a path that is medically responsible, legally organized, and realistic for the family’s future.
