[The possibility of the fertility preservation in young cancer patients based on practice of oncofertility treatment]

Gan To Kagaku Ryoho. 2012 Feb;39(2):151-7.
[Article in Japanese]

Abstract

Young female cancer patients face various problems, including a decrease in their quality of life(QOL)due to early menopause or loss of fertility after remission. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy can cause loss of reproductive function in young women due to adverse effects such as ovarian failure. The frequency of ovarian failure depends on the age of the patient, the anticancer agents used, and the dose of each agent. In these patients, improvement of the post-treatment QOL and fertility preservation can be achieved by measures such as protection of ovarian function against the effects of anticancer agents. Ovum freezing or fertilized egg freezing are also becoming fertility preservation methods for these patients. However, ovarian hyperstimulation to obtain ova is time consuming and sometimes considered taboo depending on the type of cancer. A self solution to problems occurring frequently at the same time is demanded from the patient, and the patient is forced to deal with too many choices in too little time. It is often less than one month until the cancer treatment begins after an underlying disease is diagnosed, since chemotherapy cannot be delayed. In these cases, cryopreservation of ovarian tissue is currently proposed for fertility preservation. In this manuscript, I will discuss a topic about fertility preservation in young cancer survivors including recent knowledge regarding cryopreservation of ovarian tissue.

Publication types

  • English Abstract
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Antineoplastic Agents / adverse effects*
  • Fertility Preservation*
  • Humans
  • Neoplasms* / therapy
  • Quality of Life

Substances

  • Antineoplastic Agents