Fertile Hope is a national LIVESTRONG initiative dedicated to providing reproductive information, support and hope to cancer patients and survivors whose medical treatments present the risk of infertility.
View charts summarizing currently available data on the fertility risks associated with specific cancer treatments. This information represents a compilation of clinical experience and research on common cancer treatments that may impact reproductive function and capacity. The links below will re-direct you to a PDF file.
Men
Women
Fertile Action™ is an organization dedicated to eradicating cost as the primary barrier preventing women from preserving their fertility. I have met the founder, Alice Crisci. She has amassed a list of Reproductive Endocrinologists who will do free fertility evaluations. Contact Fertile Action for local RE's in your area.
Fertility and Cancer: What Are My Options?
List of types of cancer treatments are their effect on fertility.
Showing posts with label fertility and cancer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fertility and cancer. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Pregnancy after breast cancer
Pregnancy after breast cancer
In the past, many doctors advised breast cancer survivors not to become pregnant for at least 2 years after treatment. Although only a few studies have been done, nearly all have found that pregnancy does not increase the risk of the cancer coming back after successful treatment. If you are thinking about getting pregnant, be sure to talk to your doctor first. Sometimes counseling can help you sort out the complex issues about motherhood and breast cancer survivorship.
In the past, many doctors advised breast cancer survivors not to become pregnant for at least 2 years after treatment. Although only a few studies have been done, nearly all have found that pregnancy does not increase the risk of the cancer coming back after successful treatment. If you are thinking about getting pregnant, be sure to talk to your doctor first. Sometimes counseling can help you sort out the complex issues about motherhood and breast cancer survivorship.
Pregnancy No Hazard to Breast Cancer Survivors
Pregnancy After Breast Cancer
Scientists from Belgium and Italy announced they have now shown that getting pregnant is in fact quite safe for women with a history of successfully treated breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the most commonly seen form of cancer in women during their childbearing years. And yet, as women postpone starting their families until they are older, and as survival times from breast cancer continue to increase, more and more breast-cancer survivors want to have children after they have completed their breast-cancer treatment.
Most health professionals, however, have long believed that women with a history of breast cancer should not get pregnant. These doctors fear that the increase in estrogen levels that accompany pregnancy and birth might stimulate cancer cells and cause a recurrence
But now comes some good news from the March 2010 European Breast Cancer Conference in Barcelona. Scientists from Belgium and Italy announced they have now shown that getting pregnant is in fact quite safe for women with a history of successfully treated breast cancer. In fact, their data revealed that pregnancy is not only safe for these women but that it might even improve their chances of survival.
To reach this exciting conclusion, the researchers analyzed data from 14 clinical trials that other scientists had carried out previously. These 14 earlier trials involved 19,476 women with a history of breast cancer, 1,417 of whom had gotten pregnant and 18,059 who had not. The data showed that the patients who became pregnant after successful breast-cancer treatment had a significant reduction of 42 percent in their risk of death compared to those survivors who did not get pregnant.
Scientists from Belgium and Italy announced they have now shown that getting pregnant is in fact quite safe for women with a history of successfully treated breast cancer.
Breast cancer is the most commonly seen form of cancer in women during their childbearing years. And yet, as women postpone starting their families until they are older, and as survival times from breast cancer continue to increase, more and more breast-cancer survivors want to have children after they have completed their breast-cancer treatment.
Most health professionals, however, have long believed that women with a history of breast cancer should not get pregnant. These doctors fear that the increase in estrogen levels that accompany pregnancy and birth might stimulate cancer cells and cause a recurrence
But now comes some good news from the March 2010 European Breast Cancer Conference in Barcelona. Scientists from Belgium and Italy announced they have now shown that getting pregnant is in fact quite safe for women with a history of successfully treated breast cancer. In fact, their data revealed that pregnancy is not only safe for these women but that it might even improve their chances of survival.
To reach this exciting conclusion, the researchers analyzed data from 14 clinical trials that other scientists had carried out previously. These 14 earlier trials involved 19,476 women with a history of breast cancer, 1,417 of whom had gotten pregnant and 18,059 who had not. The data showed that the patients who became pregnant after successful breast-cancer treatment had a significant reduction of 42 percent in their risk of death compared to those survivors who did not get pregnant.
Having a Child After Cancer Treatment (Part I and II) | Cancer.Net
Oncologist-approved cancer information from the American Society of Clinical Oncology
Having a Child After Cancer Treatment (Part I) | Cancer.Net
A cancer survivor’s ability to have biologic children after treatment depends on the type and location of cancer, the type and dose of treatment, and the age when treatment was received. Although not all types of cancer or cancer treatment cause infertility (the inability to start or maintain a pregnancy), it is important to talk with your doctor before you start a family to learn how your body may have been affected by having a history of cancer. In this two-part series, learn how fertility may be affected in cancer survivors and find out about some fertility procedures and other parenthood options to discuss with your doctor. This article explains how cancer treatment may affect fertility and addresses some common questions and concerns of cancer survivors.
Having a Child After Cancer Treatment (Part II) | Cancer.Net
Although infertility— the inability to start or maintain a pregnancy—can be a serious complication of cancer and cancer treatment, many cancer survivors may still be able to become parents. A wide range of procedures can preserve fertility, and other options, such as surrogacy or adoption, can be explored. Talk with your doctor to learn about your options and to find the information you need to make the best decision. This article is the second in a two-part series and discusses fertility procedures and other options for people with a history of cancer.
Having a Child After Cancer Treatment (Part I) | Cancer.Net
A cancer survivor’s ability to have biologic children after treatment depends on the type and location of cancer, the type and dose of treatment, and the age when treatment was received. Although not all types of cancer or cancer treatment cause infertility (the inability to start or maintain a pregnancy), it is important to talk with your doctor before you start a family to learn how your body may have been affected by having a history of cancer. In this two-part series, learn how fertility may be affected in cancer survivors and find out about some fertility procedures and other parenthood options to discuss with your doctor. This article explains how cancer treatment may affect fertility and addresses some common questions and concerns of cancer survivors.
Having a Child After Cancer Treatment (Part II) | Cancer.Net
Although infertility— the inability to start or maintain a pregnancy—can be a serious complication of cancer and cancer treatment, many cancer survivors may still be able to become parents. A wide range of procedures can preserve fertility, and other options, such as surrogacy or adoption, can be explored. Talk with your doctor to learn about your options and to find the information you need to make the best decision. This article is the second in a two-part series and discusses fertility procedures and other options for people with a history of cancer.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Study Fails to Find Fertility Drug-Cancer Link
June 15, 2004 -- Taking fertility drugs does not appear to increase a woman's risk of developing ovarian cancer, a new study from the National Cancer Institute suggests.
Researchers found no associations between the use of medications that stimulate ovulation and ovarian cancer in a study involving more than 12,000 women who had trouble conceiving. However, a slight increase in risk was seen among women followed for the longest time, but researchers say this increase may not be related to the use of fertility drugs.
"In general our findings are very reassuring," lead researcher Louise Brinton, PhD, tells WebMD. "We failed to confirm a major increase with the use of these drugs, but most of these women are still relatively young. For this reason, the association warrants further follow-up."
Early Findings Mixed
Since their introduction almost four decades ago, ovulation-stimulating drugs like Clomid have been prescribed to millions of infertile women. Previous studies assessing the impact of these drugs on ovarian cancer risk have been mixed, with one study suggesting up to a 27-fold increase in cancer risk among treated women who never got pregnant and other studies failing to find any link at all.
The NCI trial included 12,193 women who were seen at five infertility clinics throughout the country between 1965 and 1988. Of these, more than 4,000 women had used a fertility drug.
By 1999, 45 of the women had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, which was almost twice the number expected in the general population.
But when the researchers adjusted for other ovarian cancer risk factors, the use of fertility drugs was not found to significantly increase cancer risk.
In other words, ovarian cancer risks were similar regardless of whether these women used fertility drugs or not.
Clomid users actually had slightly fewer ovarian cancers than would be expected in the general population, while users of the protein hormone gonadotropin had slightly more cancers.
Fifteen years after treatment, the odds of developing ovarian cancer more than doubled among the small group of gonadotropin users followed for many years.
"These women are only now beginning to reach the age range where ovarian cancer is most often diagnosed," Brinton says. "That is why it is important to continue following them."
Women Who Don't Get Pregnant
Fertility expert Alan DeCherney, MD, says recent studies are consistent in finding no link between fertility drug use and ovarian cancer risk. It is now clear that women who never achieve a pregnancy are at increased risk, however, and DeCherney says earlier studies failed to take this into consideration.
"We now know that women who fail to get pregnant -- with or without fertility treatments -- are at greater risk," says DeCherney, who is a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at UCLA School of Medicine and a past president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine. "Since those who can't conceive are the ones who take fertility drugs, it is easy to see why the early studies made this association."
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