Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2012;12(6):38-43.
doi: 10.1080/15265161.2012.673688.

Preserving the right to future children: an ethical case analysis

Gwendolyn P Quinn  1 , Daniel K Stearsman, Lisa Campo-Engelstein, Devin Murphy
Affiliations
Case Reports

Preserving the right to future children: an ethical case analysis

Gwendolyn P Quinn et al. Am J Bioeth. 2012.

Abstract

We report on the case of a 2-year-old female, the youngest person ever to undergo ovarian tissue cryopreservation (OTC). This patient was diagnosed with a rare form of sickle cell disease, which required a bone-marrow transplant, and late effects included high risk of future infertility or complete sterility. Ethical concerns are raised, as the patient's mother made the decision for OTC on the patient's behalf with the intention that this would secure the option of biological childbearing in the future. Based on Beauchamp and Childress's principlism approach of respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and justice, pursing OTC was ethically justified.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

  • Incorporating gonadal health counseling into pediatric care of sickle cell patients.
    Meacham LR, Pecker LH, Gee B, Mishkin A. Meacham LR, et al. Hematology Am Soc Hematol Educ Program. 2022 Dec 9;2022(1):442-449. doi: 10.1182/hematology.2022000382. Hematology Am Soc Hematol Educ Program. 2022. PMID: 36485118 Free PMC article.
  • Ethics of fertility preservation for prepubertal children: should clinicians offer procedures where efficacy is largely unproven?
    McDougall RJ, Gillam L, Delany C, Jayasinghe Y. McDougall RJ, et al. J Med Ethics. 2018 Jan;44(1):27-31. doi: 10.1136/medethics-2016-104042. Epub 2017 Oct 30. J Med Ethics. 2018. PMID: 29084865 Free PMC article.
  • A View from the past into our collective future: the oncofertility consortium vision statement.
    Woodruff TK, Ataman-Millhouse L, Acharya KS, Almeida-Santos T, Anazodo A, Anderson RA, Appiah L, Bader J, Becktell K, Brannigan RE, Breech L, Bourlon MT, Bumbuliene Ž, Burns K, Campo-Engelstein L, Campos JR, Centola GM, Chehin MB, Chen D, De Vos M, Duncan FE, El-Damen A, Fair D, Famuyiwa Y, Fechner PY, Fontoura P, Frias O, Gerkowicz SA, Ginsberg J, Gracia CR, Goldman K, Gomez-Lobo V, Hazelrigg B, Hsieh MH, Hoyos LR, Hoyos-Martinez A, Jach R, Jassem J, Javed M, Jayasinghe Y, Jeelani R, Jeruss JS, Kaul-Mahajan N, Keim-Malpass J, Ketterl TG, Khrouf M, Kimelman D, Kusuhara A, Kutteh WH, Laronda MM, Lee JR, Lehmann V, Letourneau JM, McGinnis LK, McMahon E, Meacham LR, Mijangos MFV, Moravek M, Nahata L, Ogweno GM, Orwig KE, Pavone ME, Peccatori FA, Pesce RI, Pulaski H, Quinn G, Quintana R, Quintana T, de Carvalho BR, Ramsey-Goldman R, Reinecke J, Reis FM, Rios J, Rhoton-Vlasak AS, Rodriguez-Wallberg KA, Roeca C, Rotz SJ, Rowell E, Salama M, Saraf AJ, Scarella A, Schafer-Kalkhoff T, Schmidt D, Senapati S, Shah D, Shikanov A, Shnorhavorian M, Skiles JL, Smith JF, Smith K, Sobral F, Stimpert K, Su HI, Sugimoto K, Suzuki N, Thakur M, Victorson D, Viale L, Vitek W, Wallace WH, Wartella EA, W… See abstract for full author list ➔ Woodruff TK, et al. J Assist Reprod Genet. 2021 Jan;38(1):3-15. doi: 10.1007/s10815-020-01983-4. Epub 2021 Jan 6. J Assist Reprod Genet. 2021. PMID: 33405006 Free PMC article.
  • Current standing and future directions in pediatric oncofertility: a narrative review.
    Lau GA, Schaeffer AJ. Lau GA, et al. Transl Androl Urol. 2018 Jul;7(Suppl 3):S276-S282. doi: 10.21037/tau.2018.05.04. Transl Androl Urol. 2018. PMID: 30159233 Free PMC article. Review.
  • Sickle cell disease and infertility risks: implications for counseling and care of affected girls and women.
    Pecker LH, Cameron K. Pecker LH, et al. Expert Rev Hematol. 2024 Aug;17(8):493-504. doi: 10.1080/17474086.2024.2372320. Epub 2024 Jun 26. Expert Rev Hematol. 2024. PMID: 38913857 Free PMC article. Review.
See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. ASRM. The Ethics Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine: Fertility preservation and reproduction in cancer patients. [Retrieved 12-13-11]; http://www.sart.org/uploadedFiles/ASRM_Content/News_and_Publications/Eth....
    1. Ambrosini G, Andrisani A, Porcu E, et al. Oocytes cryopreservation: State of art. Reproductive Toxicology. 2006;22:250–262. - PubMed
    1. Basco D, Campo-Engelstein L, Rodriguez S. Insuring Against Infertility: Expanding State Infertility Mandates to Include Fertility Preservation Technology for Cancer Patients. J Law Med Ethics. 2010;38:832–839. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Beauchamp TL, Childress JF. Principles of Biomedical Ethics. 1st ed. New York: Oxford University Press; 1979.
    1. Beauchamp TL, Childress JF. Principles of Biomedical Ethics. 6th ed. New York: Oxford University Press; 2009.

Publication types