What are the practical aspects of discussing fertility with people who have cancer?

What are the practical aspects of discussing fertility with people who have cancer?

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Jill Trainer, MSW, LCSW  
Patient Navigator, Division of Fertility Preservation 
Oncofertility Consortium 
Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University

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And then the practical concerns end up being, you know, “What can we do? What’s my timeline? What’s my oncologist say about this? What’s the discussion that has to happen between me and maybe my spouse or my partner or my parents in order to come to a decision, and the cost?” I mean, the bottom line is they’ve just been diagnosed with cancer. They’re going to be looking at insurmountable medical bills. And then we’re telling them, “Oh, there’s also this issue of your fertility. And if you wanna do anything, there’s another cost associated with that that may or may not be covered by your insurance.” So, cost is always a practical concern that comes up with the cancer patients. And sometimes, it’s not the easiest conversation to have because the bottom line is they may wanna do something but may not be able to afford it.