Medical Oncologist
CION Cancer Clinics
The PGT-M process, stage by stage | CION Cancer Clinics
PGT-M is IVF with one extra step. Embryos are made in a laboratory, a few cells are tested for your family's gene fault, and only an embryo without the fault is placed in the womb. The whole process usually takes several months. This page walks through each stage, from building the test to the transfer, and is honest about what it asks of you. At CION Cancer Clinics, our team helps carriers and their families plan checks, next steps and support after a genetic result.
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Medically reviewed by Dr. Naresh GunduConsultant Medical Oncologist · MBBS, DNB (Internal Medicine), DM (Medical Oncology, AIIMS) · last reviewed September 2026, next review due September 2027
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On this page
- What actually happens during PGT-M?
- What has to be in place before you start?
- What happens at each stage of a PGT-M cycle?
- What do the IVF terms mean?
- What PGT-M can tell you, and what it cannot
- Four things couples expect, and what is actually true
- What this page cannot tell you
- Common questions about the PGT-M process
The short answer
What actually happens during PGT-M?
PGT-M is IVF with one extra step. Embryos are made in a laboratory, a few cells are taken from each, and those cells are tested for your family's gene fault. Only an embryo without the fault is placed in the womb, usually in a later cycle after the results are back.
Why it takes months, not weeks
Before any IVF starts, the laboratory has to build a test for your family's exact fault. That set-up is often the slowest part of the whole process. Then comes a full IVF cycle, the wait for results, and a separate cycle to transfer a frozen embryo. Most couples should plan for several months from the first appointment.
What it asks of you
Hormone injections, scans, a minor procedure to collect eggs, and a lot of waiting. It asks the most of the woman, even when the fault comes from her husband. It is worth knowing that before you start, so the decision is shared fairly.
Every cycle is different. Your IVF team and counsellor will give you a timeline based on your own tests.Before the first injection
What has to be in place before you start?
Four things must be ready. If one is missing, the cycle is usually delayed until it is.
A confirmed family fault
The carrier's report must show a fault classed as pathogenic, meaning known to cause disease, or likely pathogenic. A variant of uncertain significance is not enough to test embryos for.
Samples from the right people
Both partners give a blood or saliva sample. The laboratory may also ask for samples from the carrier's parents or an affected relative, to track the fault accurately through the family.
A fertility work-up
Blood tests and a scan estimate how many eggs the woman is likely to produce, and a semen test checks the sperm. These shape the drug plan and your realistic chances.
Usually includes
- A blood test for egg reserve
- A pelvic ultrasound
- A semen analysis
Counselling for both of you
A counsellor explains what the test can and cannot tell you, and what happens if no embryo is free of the fault. Both partners should attend.
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistStep by step
What happens at each stage of a PGT-M cycle?
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The laboratory builds your test
Using the family samples, the laboratory designs a test for your exact fault. This can take several weeks and sometimes a few months. IVF usually waits until it is ready.
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Stimulation injections
The woman takes daily hormone injections for about ten days to two weeks, so several eggs mature at once. Scans and blood tests track how the eggs are growing.
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Egg collection and fertilisation
Under sedation, eggs are collected with a fine needle guided by ultrasound. Each egg is fertilised by injecting a single sperm, which keeps stray sperm DNA out of the later test.
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Embryo biopsy and freezing
Embryos grow in the laboratory for five or six days. A few cells are taken from the outer layer, which becomes the placenta, and the embryos are frozen while testing happens.
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Results for each embryo
The laboratory reports each embryo as carrying the fault, free of it, or inconclusive. Your counsellor goes through the report with you.
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Frozen embryo transfer
In a later cycle, one embryo free of the fault is thawed and placed in the womb. A pregnancy test follows about two weeks later.
On the clinic's paperwork
What do the IVF terms mean?
- ICSI
- Injecting a single sperm directly into each egg. It is used in PGT-M so that no extra sperm DNA confuses the test.
- Blastocyst
- An embryo after five or six days of growth, with an inner group of cells that becomes the baby and an outer layer that becomes the placenta.
- Trophectoderm biopsy
- Removing a few cells from that outer layer for testing. The inner cells are left untouched.
- Vitrification
- Very fast freezing that lets embryos be stored safely while the results are awaited.
- Frozen embryo transfer
- Thawing a tested embryo and placing it in the womb in a later cycle, once the lining is ready.
- Allele dropout
- When part of the DNA in a tiny sample fails to copy, which can make a result wrong. It is the main reason results are confirmed in pregnancy.
Side by side
What PGT-M can tell you, and what it cannot
PGT-M can tell you
PGT-M cannot tell you
Whether an embryo carries your family's fault
Whether the child will be free of every cancer
Which embryos are suitable to transfer
Whether a transferred embryo will implant
How many tested embryos you have in storage
Whether another cycle will produce more
A very accurate result for the one fault
A result as certain as a test in pregnancy
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Commonly believed
Four things couples expect, and what is actually true
"PGT-M means our child will never get cancer."
It removes one known family fault. The child still has the ordinary risk of cancer that anyone in the population has, and still needs the usual health checks as an adult.
"Every cycle produces a suitable embryo."
With most cancer gene faults, each embryo has a one in two chance of carrying it, so the numbers can go against you. Some cycles end with no embryo free of the fault, and many couples need more than one cycle.
"The biopsy harms the baby."
The cells come from the layer that forms the placenta. Studies so far have not shown clear harm to children born after biopsy, although long-term follow-up is still limited.
"We can choose other things while we are at it."
Testing is limited to the family fault, and sometimes a chromosome check. Choosing an embryo's sex is illegal in India under both the PCPNDT Act and the ART Act.
Being straight with you
What this page cannot tell you
It cannot tell you whether PGT-M is right for you. That depends on your gene, your age, your fertility tests, your finances and how you both feel about IVF. A counsellor and an IVF specialist, together, can help you weigh those honestly.
It cannot give you your own chances
Success depends heavily on the woman's age and egg reserve, and on how many embryos a cycle produces. General figures can mislead in either direction. Your IVF team can give you an estimate once your fertility tests are done.
Who this does not apply to
PGT-M needs a confirmed family fault, so it does not apply if your result was negative or showed only a variant of uncertain significance. Many carriers also choose not to use it at all, and have children naturally or plan differently. What your own result means is a question for the counsellor who ordered the test.
If you want to explore PGT-M, the helpline can arrange a counselling appointment to start with.Questions we are asked
Common questions about the PGT-M process
How long does the whole process take?
Usually several months from the first counselling session to embryo transfer. Building the test for your family's fault is often the slowest part. Stimulation, egg collection and biopsy happen within one cycle, and the frozen transfer follows once results are back.
Do we need IVF even if we can conceive naturally?
Yes. Embryos can only be tested if they are made in a laboratory, so PGT-M always involves IVF, even for couples with no fertility problem at all. That is the main reason it is a bigger undertaking than most couples expect.
Which family members need to give samples?
Both partners, almost always. The laboratory may also ask for samples from the carrier's parents or another affected relative, to follow the fault accurately. Your counsellor will tell you exactly who is needed before the test is built.
What if no embryo is free of the fault?
It happens, and it is hard. You can try another cycle, or discuss other routes such as donor eggs or sperm, or having children without testing. Counselling after a disappointing cycle is part of the process, not an extra.
Is the embryo biopsy safe?
The biopsy takes a few cells from the outer layer, which forms the placenta, not the baby. Studies so far have not found clear harm to children, but long-term follow-up is limited. Ask your IVF team about their own experience with biopsy.
Why is a test in pregnancy still offered?
PGT-M is very accurate, but it works on a handful of cells, so it is not perfect. A CVS or amniocentesis can confirm the result once you are pregnant. Some couples choose that and some do not, and both are reasonable.
Can PGT-M be done in Hyderabad?
Several IVF clinics in Hyderabad offer embryo testing, often with a specialist laboratory designing the family test. Ask any clinic whether it is registered under the ART Act and has done PGT-M for your gene before.
Can embryos we froze earlier be tested?
Sometimes. Embryos frozen without a biopsy can be thawed, biopsied and frozen again, but each step adds some risk. If you are freezing embryos now, decide about testing before the cycle so the biopsy can be done at the same time.
Your Specialists
Meet CION's oncologists. Bring your family history or genetic report to them.
Our medical oncologists see people with a strong family history of cancer, arrange genetic counselling and testing where it fits, and plan the checks that follow.
Medical Oncologist
Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
MBBS(Gold Medal), DNB(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Gold Medal)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
Medical Oncologist
Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
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Sources
- American Society for Reproductive Medicine — Indications and management of preimplantation genetic testing for monogenic conditions: a committee opinion (2023)
- Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority — Pre-implantation genetic testing for monogenic disorders (PGT-M) and pre-implantation genetic testing for chromosomal structural rearrangements (PGT-SR)
- India Code, Government of India — The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
Preimplantation genetic testing (PGT-M) explainedWhat PGT-M is, before the step-by-step detailPGT-M cost in IndiaWhat each stage costs, and what schemes coverSuccess rates and realistic expectations for PGT-MHow likely a cycle is to end in a pregnancyCVS and amniocentesis: what each involvesThe confirmation test offered once you are pregnant
Talk to us
Thinking about PGT-M for your family?
A counsellor can check whether your result qualifies and explain each step before you meet an IVF clinic. One helpline serves every CION centre.