How do I cope with my child's infertility, or the prospect of it?
Related Questions
- How can my child optimize their fertility?
- My child has been treated for cancer; does that mean that he or she will be infertile?
- How can I get a measure of my child's fertility, and when should I do this?
- Where can we each go to get advice and support?
- What are some good support resources for parents, patients, and their families?<
- What is the National Fertility Hotline and how is it useful to people with cancer and parents?
Related Content
Fertility is an issue that many people—couples, parents, and even children—take for granted. When your own child’s fertility is threatened, you may start to feel many confusing and distressing emotions. Maybe you’re wondering if you’ll ever have grandchildren. Or you may feel guilty even thinking about grandchildren.
It’s important to keep perspective, and remember that cancer and cancer treatment are very personalized. There are a number of factors that can affect the risk of infertility, including the type of cancer, your child’s age at the time of treatment, and the type of therapy.
GIRLS
Many girls who’ve gone through cancer treatment have gone on to have their own children through natural means or using assisted reproductive techniques such as in vitro fertilization (IVF). While some women do become infertile as a result of treatment, they are still able to build families through egg donation, surrogacy, or adoption. Click on the links to your right to learn more about the available options.
BOYS
For boys who have completed cancer treatment, there is a wide variation in the length of time it takes to begin or resume sperm production. When it comes to your son’s fertility, patience is key.
Many men who did not preserve a semen sample prior to cancer treatment find out that their hormones and sperm concentration are normal. Others may have low hormone levels or sperm production, and fertility specialists can use techniques such as in vitro fertilization (or IVF), or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (or ICSI), to help them achieve a pregnancy.
Others are not as fortunate, and they may have completely lost the ability to produce sperm. Even in these cases, fertility specialists may be able to use oncological testicular sperm extraction, or Onco-TESE, to recover viable sperm directly from the testicular tissue. In about 40–50% of these men, specialists can find sperm. These sperm can then be used for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) to achieve a pregnancy.
If no sperm can be located in Onco-TESE, men may still have the opportunity to become a parent through IVF with donor sperm or through adoption. Click on the links to your right to learn more about the available options.