Some cancer treatments may affect how a girl’s ovaries or a boy’s testicles, or testes, work. This may last for a short time after completing cancer treatment. Or it may last a lifetime and cause infertility. Infertility is the inability to have biological children. Infertility from cancer treatment is called a late effect.
Full Answer
Can cancer treatment cause infertility in children?
This may last for a short time after completing cancer treatment. Or it may last a lifetime and cause infertility. Infertility is the inability to have biological children. Infertility from cancer treatment is called a late effect. Your child's risk of late effects depends on the cancer type and treatment plan.
Is infertility common among male cancer survivors?
Infertility among male cancer survivors is common yet has been the subject of less research than female infertility. Pregnancy and live birth data are sparse, and spermatogenesis parameters are frequently used as surrogates although generally felt to be more reliable than markers of ovarian reserve.
What is the role of fertility counseling in the treatment of cancer?
Pretreatment fertility counseling and fertility preservation improve quality of life in reproductive age women with cancer. Cancer. 2012;118(6):1710–1717. [PMC free article][PubMed] [Google Scholar] 4. Jeruss JS, Woodruff TK.. Preservation of fertility in patients with cancer. N Engl J Med. 2009;360(9):902–911.
What can we do to improve Oncofertility in young patients with cancer?
Newly diagnosed young patients with cancer and survivors may also benefit from the development and incorporation of counseling tools and guidelines for referral to oncofertility specialists. Funding The authors have no funding sources to report. Notes
Can childhood cancer make you infertile?
Infertility remains one of the most common and life-altering complications experienced by adults treated for cancer during childhood. Surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy that negatively affects any component of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis may compromise reproductive outcomes in childhood cancer survivors.
Does chemotherapy as a child make you infertile?
Some cancer treatments can damage the testes or ovaries (reproductive organs). This can lead to temporary or permanent infertility (not being able to have children). Chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery all can have lasting effects on reproductive health.
Does cancer treatment make you infertile?
Chemotherapy (especially alkylating agents) can affect the ovaries, causing them to stop releasing eggs and estrogen. This is called primary ovarian insufficiency (POI). Sometimes POI is temporary and your menstrual periods and fertility return after treatment.
Does Chemo make you permanently infertile?
The infertility may be temporary or permanent. This depends on the drugs you have, the doses and your age. Permanent infertility is more likely if you have higher doses. Some chemotherapy drugs can affect the nerves in the genital area.
What are the chances of being infertile after chemotherapy?
After chemo treatment, sperm production slows down or might stop altogether. Some sperm production might return, but can take many years, and sometimes does not return at all. Chemo drugs that are linked to the risk of infertility in males include: Busulfan.
Does chemo damage your eggs?
Chemotherapy (chemo) can damage the eggs that are in your ovaries. You're born with all the eggs you will ever have. Some chemo medicines are more likely to cause infertility than others. It depends on which medicines you get, the dose, and length of treatment.
Can chemotherapy cause birth defects?
Studies show there is a risk of birth defects when a woman becomes pregnant while getting or after receiving some types of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and hormone therapy. In some cases, the risk can last for a long time, making getting pregnant a concern even years after treatment ends.
Does radiation therapy cause infertility?
Radiation therapy to the reproductive organs as well as radiation near the abdomen, pelvis, or spine may lower sperm counts and testosterone levels, causing infertility. Radiation may also destroy sperm cells and the stem cells that make sperm.
Can you have a baby after cancer?
Often, pregnancy after cancer treatment is safe for both the mother and baby. Pregnancy does not seem to raise the risk of cancer coming back. Still, some women may be told to wait a number of years before trying to have a baby.
Does leukemia treatment cause infertility?
Chemotherapy and radiation can cause side effects as well as long-term and late effects, which can appear months or years after treatment. One possible late effect is infertility, the inability to conceive a child naturally.
Does childhood leukemia affect fertility?
“We have known for some time, from data from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study,2 that the risk of ever becoming pregnant is decreased for female childhood cancer survivors. The relative risk is 0.8,” Dr. Mulrooney reported. “It is reduced similarly for male childhood cancer survivors, a relative risk of 0.6.”
How long does it take for chemo to leave sperm?
Some men regain the ability to produce sperm after treatment. This generally takes 1 to 3 years, but can sometimes take longer. Some men have only partial recovery, with low sperm counts, and some men never recover sperm production.
Evaluating Fertility
Finding A Fertility Specialist and Other Resources
- LiveSTRONG and The OncoFertility Consortium websites can help you find a fertility specialist. LiveSTRONG offers financial assistance to cancer survivors for fertility care. The OncoFertility Consortium and The National Infertility Association’s website, Resolve, offers information on fertility treatments and testing, adoption, and deciding to not have children. Resolve also offers i…
Should I Be Followed by A High-Risk Doctor For My pregnancy?
- Women who have had cancer treatment may be at higher risk for issues during pregnancy and should consider seeing a high-risk obstetrician. This is important if you received radiation to the abdomen or pelvis area, had surgery involving female reproductive organs, or if you received chemotherapy that can cause heart damage.
Preventing Unwanted Pregnancy
- Even if your periods stop during treatment, you may still be able to get pregnant. While your provider does their best to predict if you will be able to get pregnant, this is not a guarantee. The use of effective birth control during and after cancer treatment is important even when you think you cannot get pregnant. Whether or not a woman is able ...