Mrs S - with male factor, depending on how bad the problem is, IUI isn't usually suggested long term. my clinic said we'd try three IUI's before moving to IVF - and we don't have male factor issues. the chances of success with IVF are much higher than with IUI. we had two cancelled IUI's (fail to respond) and three IUI's before moving to IVF. as much as IUI is cheaper, the expense related to IVF and the success rates, it does become almost more affordable (if you can come up with the initial money!). we were waiting to move forward to our next IVF cycle and decided we couldnt' wait five months to get into the next local clinic (we couldn't afford the immediate one - plus it was pretty much booked out) so we asked to try IUI again - and got our longed for BFP and baby girl from the second IUI that time.

it's a really tough call - and i would be speaking seriously with your FS about it. don't look JUST at the financial aspect (as much as that is usually the most pressing thing in your mind - was for us!) - look at the chances of success as well. i think for an IUI with no male factor issues, the success rate is around 5% (i THINK) for IUI - with male factor that could be signficantly lower - while IVF can be as high as 50% depending on embryo quality. i guess i would look at the fact that IVF could be 10 times more likely to succeed - IUI can be very stressful to go through month after month kwim?

good luck in whatever you decide to do

BG