Lena Trafford, 30, from Tarleton, near Preston, went through seven gruelling cycles of IVF treatment and donated her eggs five times before having a successful pregnancy.

She and husband Jonathan, 31, are now celebrating a special Christmas with new baby Max and seven-year-old daughter Abbie.

To add the icing on the cake, Lena has discovered that one of the women to whom she donated her eggs is celebrating a family of her own after giving birth to twins.

Lena said: "Max is an absolute joy and has completed our family.
"It is wonderful to have him after everything we have been through. We had just about given up on having another child.

"I am thrilled that one of the women who benefited from my eggs has had twins. I am sure it will be an unforgettable Christmas for her and her family too."

The couple, who have been together for 14 years and married for five, conceived daughter Abbie without any problems, so were dismayed when a second pregnancy didn't happen when they started trying in May 2004.

After about a year, Lena went to see her GP and had routine blood tests before they were transferred to Ormskirk and District Hospital, where they were told they would need a specialised form of IVF called ICSI.

However, as the couple already had a daughter, they were not entitled to IVF treatment on the NHS and had to pay privately.

They went to Liverpool Women's Hospital and had their first cycle of IVF, costing £4,000, in May 2006.

To their delight, Lena became pregnant on their first attempt, but only days later she suffered a miscarriage.

They had paid out £8,000 on two cycles of IVF and had taken on a bigger mortgage so looked into egg sharing at CARE Fertility Services in Manchester.

This reduced the cost from £4,000 to £1,500 but their third, fourth and fifth attempts at IVF failed. Unbowed, they decided to have a sixth and final attempt.

Lena said: "I had always planned a big family and desperately wanted a brother or sister for Abbie.

"A lot of people couldn't understand our desperation and kept saying, 'At least you've got one child – some people don't have any'.

"But even though we appreciated Abbie, she is not a consolation prize and it didn't stop us wanting another child."

After seven IVF cycles, five with egg share, Max was born on July 5 this year.

Lena said: "We have spent around £20,000 on fertility treatment, but when we see Max, we feel it was worth every penny.
"Luckily, we had a happy outcome in the end!"

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