Elton John and David Furnish used the surrogacy agency used by high-profile clients
Sir Elton John and David Furnish used a long established surrogacy agency in their quest to have a child.The Centre for Surrogate Parenting, based in Encino, California, and Annapolis, Maryland, has celebrated the birth of more than 1,400 babies since it was established in 1980.
Around 100 couples are going through its surrogacy programme at any one time, and one third of those are same sex couples.
CSP helped its first gay couple in 1989.
The agency has been used by high profile clients in the past and Sir Elton and Mr Furnish would have been attracted by its reputation as a world leader in the field of surrogacy and egg donation.
A gestational surrogacy, in which a woman is implanted with a donated egg, can cost up to $150,000 (£98,000). That includes medical and legal costs and a fee of up to $30,000 (£19,500) to the surrogate.
Elton and David's is thought to have been a gestational surrogacy, in which the surrogate mother is not the biological mother.
CSP recommends that the fathers are in contact with the surrogate at least once every two weeks throughout the pregnancy. It says many couples are now communicating using Skype, which allows them to see each other.
Sir Elton and Mr Furnish would also have been encouraged to attend at least two doctor's visits. They would also have been encouraged to be at the birth.
The baby typically then remains at the hospital for a day and leaves with its new parents.
The new parents provide photographs to the surrogate at three, six, 12 and 24 months.
Joanne Bubrick, program administrator at CPS, said the process still involves some luck as to whether the woman becomes pregnant on the first try.
She said: “A lot depends on luck. It seems like it should be a science but there is a bit of Mother Nature.”
CSP later issued a statement on its website. It said: “CSP is proud to have helped David Furnish and Elton John become the proud parents of a baby boy on Christmas Day.”
Around 400 women a month ask about becoming surrogates for the agency but less than a dozen are accepted each month. The screening process for them lasts three to five months.
For gay couples there are several surrogacy choices available - telegraph.co.uk