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
Review
. 2014 Oct 4;384(9950):1302-10.
doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(14)60834-5.

Fertility preservation in women with cancer

Michel De Vos  1 , Johan Smitz  2 , Teresa K Woodruff  3
Affiliations
Review

Fertility preservation in women with cancer

Michel De Vos et al. Lancet. .

Erratum in

  • Lancet. 2015 Mar 7;385(9971):856

Abstract

Enhanced long-term survival rates of young women with cancer and advances in reproductive medicine and cryobiology have culminated in an increased interest in fertility preservation methods in girls and young women with cancer. Present data suggest that young patients with cancer should be referred for fertility preservation counselling quickly to help with their coping process. Although the clinical application of novel developments, including oocyte vitrification and oocyte maturation in vitro, has resulted in reasonable success rates in assisted reproduction programmes, experience with these techniques in the setting of fertility preservation is in its infancy. It is hoped that these and other approaches, some of which are still regarded as experimental (eg, ovarian tissue cryopreservation, pharmacological protection against gonadotoxic agents, in-vitro follicle growth, and follicle transplantation) will be optimised and become established within the next decade. Unravelling the complex mechanisms of activation and suppression of follicle growth will not only expand the care of thousands of women diagnosed with cancer, but also inform the care of millions of women confronted with reduced reproductive fitness because of ageing.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure
Figure
Recommended fertility preservation approaches *Or cryopreservation of embryos. IVF=in-vitro fertilisation. ICSI=intracytoplasmic sperm injection.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

References

    1. Howlader N, Noone AM, Krapcho M, et al. SEER cancer statistics review, 1975–2010. National Cancer Institute; http://seer.cancer.gov/csr/1975_2010/ (accessed Sept 18, 2014)
    1. Forman EJ, Anders CK, Behera MA. A nationwide survey of oncologists regarding treatment-related infertility and fertility preservation in female cancer patients. Fertil Steril. 2010;94:1652–56. - PubMed
    1. Practice Committee of American Society for Reproductive Medicine Fertility preservation in patients undergoing gonadotoxic therapy or gonadectomy: a committee opinion. Fertil Steril. 2013;100:1214–23. - PubMed
    1. Mersereau JE, Goodman LR, Deal AM, Gorman JR, Whitcomb BW, Su HI. To preserve or not to preserve: how difficult is the decision about fertility preservation? Cancer. 2013;119:4044–50. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Loren AW, Mangu PB, Beck LN, et al. American Society of Clinical Oncology Fertility preservation for patients with cancer: American Society of Clinical Oncology clinical practice guideline update. J Clin Oncol. 2013;31:2500–10. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances