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Jan 28, 2025, 07:41

Grace B. Charrier: Can I still have children after cancer?

Grace B. Charrier, at shared a post on LinkedIn:

“”Can I still have children after cancer?”

I get asked this question very often.

Talking this through with one’s MedOnc (Medical-Oncology) team before treatment begins, is key to ensuring that options remain for the patient, as certain cancer treatments do affect fertility.

Consider this:

Consulting a Fertility expert who can assess and advise on next steps.

Fertility Preservation Options:

Egg or Sperm Freezing.

For women, egg freezing.
For men, sperm banking.

These are the most common methods for preserving fertility and should be done before treatment takes place.

Embryo Freezing: For women who have a partner, embryo freezing might be another option. This is similar to egg freezing but entails fertilizing the eggs with sperm first.

Ovarian Tissue Freezing: For women who are unable to undergo egg retrieval (due to time constraints or their age), freezing ovarian tissue is another option, although this is more experimental.

Ovarian Suppression: In some cases, medications can be given to suppress ovarian function during treatment to protect fertility, though this is not always a guaranteed method.

Timing: Cancer treatment can be urgent, but taking the time for fertility preservation is important. Talking with the oncologist to balance the need to start cancer treatment promptly with fertility preservation options is important.

Understand Risks and Success Rates: This is so important so as to not raise expectations too high. One should have an open mind. The fertility expert can explain the risks and the chances of success for each preservation method.

Explore Surrogacy or Adoption: The patient should be open to this should other options not go according to plan.

Counseling: Fertility and cancer treatment can be emotionally challenging so one must not be shy to address their mental health.
Remember, no health without mental health.

Please click on the link in comments to watch this very insightful and educational conversation with my guest, Dr. Abayomi Ajayi, a renowned global fertility expert, Founder, MD/CEO
Nordica Fertility Centre Lagos, Nigeria who walked us through the different options in this throwback episode.

I was particularly interested in the AYAs and what they could do to protect their fertility should they so wish because for Adolescents and Young Adults (AYAs) 15-39 years old, a cancer diagnosis presents a different set of challenges for them.”