Press Release: Sperm Bank Offering Free Services to Military Men

Michael Van Sickler
St. Petersburg Times
Thursday, March 20, 2003

It's not exactly war bonds, but Drs. Edward Zbella and Mark Sanchez say they want to do their part to support local troops overseas.

The doctors announced Wednesday that they will store the sperm of any military man stationed in Florida - free of charge.

"Some of our boys may not come back," Sanchez said. "Our hope is that they'll never have to use this and that they can come back and have kids naturally. But if something does happen, it is here."

After the Persian Gulf War in 1991, Zbella said he had 12 to 15 patients who blamed their low sperm counts on chemicals they encountered during combat. Many veterans blame the anthrax vaccine for fertility problems.

"Is there a cause and effect?" Zbella asked. "I don't know. But we thought now would be a good time to offer this. We wished we had offered it sooner."

The doctors are partners in the Florida Fertility Institute, which has offices in St. Petersburg, Clearwater and Tampa.

They plan to advertise the free service in The Thunderbolt, the newspaper at MacDill Air Force Base.

"We still have a large majority of soldiers here who haven't gone (overseas) yet," Sanchez said. "So, depending on how long this war lasts, there's still time for many of them to do this."

Their sperm would be stored in 10-inch vials that resemble straws. The straws are inserted into cylinders that are stored in liquid nitrogen at temperatures of about minus 196 degrees.

The process, including analysis of the sperm, typically costs about $1,400, Sanchez and Zbella said.

The doctors said they have many servicemen as patients.

A Brandon woman, Andrea, said her husband gave samples to the Florida Fertility Institute before he was sent to Qatar in January. She did not give her last name, citing military security policy.

The couple has been married 12 years. For the last seven, they have been trying to have children. Andrea, 36, said her husband gave samples because of her age, not because they expected him to be going overseas.

For the past two months, she said, he has checked in every other day to see how she's doing and if the fertilization was successful.

He warned her that with the action picking up, his calls won't be as frequent.

"We hope it works," Andrea said, choking back tears. "I want my husband to be a father."

Drs. Edward Zbella, left, and Mark Sanchez are offering free sperm collection and storage for military personnel at their practice at the Florida Fertility Institute. "Our hope is that they'll never have to use this . . ." Sanchez said. "But if something does happen, it is here."

For more information on the Florida Fertility Institute Military Sperm Bank program click here.