Cryopreservation of ovarian tissue for fertility preservation in a large cohort of young girls: focus on pubertal development

STUDY QUESTION Is there an association between the need for medical puberty induction and the diagnosis or treatment received in girls who have undergone cryopreservation of ovarian tissue for fertility preservation? SUMMARY ANSWER There was a clear association between the intensity of treatment received and requirement for medical puberty induction but no association with the diagnosis. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY Although it cannot be predicted which girls will become infertile or develop premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) following intensive chemotherapy or irradiation, patients who are at high risk of POI should be offered ovarian tissue cryopreservation (OTC). This includes girls who are planned to receive either high doses of alkylating agents, conditioning regimen before stem cell transplantation (SCT), total body irradiation (TBI) or high radiation doses to the craniospinal, abdominal or pelvic area. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE, DURATION This is a retrospective cohort study. In total, 176 Danish girls under 18 years of age have had OTC performed over a period of 15 years. An overview of the girls’ diagnoses and mean age at OTC as well as the number of deceased is presented. Of the 176 girls, 38 had died and 46 girls were still younger than 12 years so their pubertal development cannot be evaluated yet. For the 60 girls who had OTC performed after 12 years of age, the incidence of POI was evaluated and in the group of 32 girls who were younger than 12 years at OTC, the as...
Source: Human Reproduction - Category: Reproduction Medicine Authors: Tags: Puberty, ageing and HRT Source Type: research