Highlighting the solutions for fertility preservation during cancer treatment

Infertility is a common health concern in men and women undergoing cancer treatments like chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery. Experts reveal how patients can preserve fertility during cancer treatment

Thanks to the recent advances in cancer diagnosis and treatment, the survival rate for young people diagnosed with cancer has increased but as most of us are aware of, undergoing cancer treatment may have various unintended side effects on health, including fertility. Infertility is a common health concern, especially for women undergoing cancer treatments like chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery.

Highlighting the solutions for fertility preservation during cancer treatment (Thirdman)

A simple and effective solution to this challenge is to take steps to preserve fertility before undergoing any cancer therapy. There are many tried and tested as well as novel ways that can help people to have kids post cancer treatment:

• Egg freezing

Most fertility experts recommend egg or embryo preservation techniques for women planning to get pregnant in the future. Egg freezing, also known as oocyte cryopreservation, is a technique in which women’s eggs (oocytes) are extracted, frozen and stored to preserve them for future use. It involves 8–11 days of strictly controlled ovarian stimulation through hormonal therapy, where matured eggs are retrieved in an outpatient or clinic setting by an ultrasound-guided needle aspiration technique. Egg retrieval doesn't require any cuts or stitches, and it's usually the only reason to take a day off.

In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Kamayani Naresh, healthcare expert and creator of Zyropathy, shared, “Egg freezing is a frequent method of fertility preservation selected by single men and women who desire greater flexibility in the future regarding how and with whom they use their eggs. Embryo freezing is most commonly selected by married or partnered women who are convinced they will desire children in the future with a certain known individual. According to our research, most cancer patients complain about pregnancy issues after the treatment instead of the people who undergo treatment, claiming to have no or fewer complications in conceiving. Treatment prepares and rejuvenates the system.”

• Embryo freezing or cryopreservation

Just like egg freezing, embryo freezing is an assisted reproductive technique that involves freezing and storing fertilized eggs (embryo) thereby helping to achieve pregnancy in the future. Dr Girija Kishore, Lead-Clinical Governance at LivLong, revealed, "It’s a common misconception that embryo freezing is far more effective than egg freezing." In reality, both embryos and eggs have a high chance of living when preserved making the two approaches almost equivalent in terms of success rate. However, when embryos are frozen, more data is accessible up front; for example, the number of fertilized eggs can be determined before freezing.

• Ovarian suppression

Another less talked approach for fertility preservation in women is ovarian suppression in which hormones are used to suppress the maturation of the eggs by the ovaries. The aim of the treatment is to stop ovaries from working and preserving the immature eggs to be used post the cancer therapy and because of this, experts in oncofertility suggest combining it with novel approaches like freezing eggs or embryos.

• Sperm freezing

Men's fertility preservation is typically easier than women's. The most popular procedure is freezing the sperm. Most men can go straight to the cryobank and have their sperm frozen without any further preparation. Many cancer-stricken women worry about prolonging treatment breaks for too long in order to keep their eggs from deteriorating. Novel fertility preservation methods, such as egg and embryo freezing, may be available to cancer patients who are about to begin treatment. The two to four weeks that eggs are frozen don't seem to affect how long cancer patients live. Hormones are used in fertility preservation procedures like egg and embryo freezing, and this has sparked concerns that hormone-dependent diseases like breast cancer could be exacerbated by these procedures. However, if you stick to clinical guidelines and take some precautions, you can keep these hormones from making your cancer worse. Retaining fertility prior to starting cancer treatment improves the odds of having a baby. People who want to keep being able to have children before getting cancer treatment can do so in a number of ways.