Female Fertility Preservation in the Pediatric and Adolescent Cancer Patient Population

Publication date: Available online 26 October 2017 Source:Best Practice & Research Clinical Obstetrics & Gynaecology Author(s): Gabriela N. Algarroba, Joseph S. Sanfilippo, Hanna Valli-Pulaski The 5-year survival rate for childhood cancer is over 80%, thereby increasing the number of young women facing infertility in the future due to the gonadotoxic effects of chemotherapy and radiation. The gonadotoxic effects of childhood cancer treatment vary by the radiation regimen and the chemotherapeutic drugs utilized. Although the American Society of Clinical Oncology guidelines recommend fertility preservation for all patients, there are several barriers and ethical considerations to fertility preservation in the pediatric and adolescent female population. Additionally, the fertility preservation methods for pre- and post-pubertal females differ, with only experimental methods available for pre-pubertal females. We will review the risk of chemotherapy and radiation on female fertility, the approach to fertility preservation in the pediatric and adolescent female population, methods of fertility preservation for both pre- and post-pubertal females, barriers to fertility preservation, cost and psychological and ethical considerations.
Source: Best Practice and Research Clinical Obstetrics and Gynaecology - Category: OBGYN Source Type: research