Recent medical advances have increased the number of cancer survivors. Following successful treatment and return to a normal life, a number of cancer survivors in their reproductive years desire to start - or complete - their family. Unfortunately, however, the cancer treatment can impact their therapy.
A new study by Swedish researchers has found that more men than women are counseled regarding fertility preservation before embarking on a treatment regimen. Researchers at the Karolinska University Hospital (Stockholm, Sweden) and the Uppsala University (Uppsala, Sweden) published their findings online in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
The goal of the study was to investigate the perception of fertility-related information and use of fertility preservation in male and female cancer survivors who were of reproductive age. The authors reviewed data from population-based registers in Sweden and identified cancer survivors diagnosed from 2003 to 2007. Included in the study were cancer survivors who were age 18 to 45 years at diagnosis and had lymphoma, acute leukemia, testicular cancer, ovarian cancer, or female breast cancer that was treated with chemotherapy. A questionnaire was mailed to 810 eligible participants; 484 cancer survivors (60%) returned the questionnaire.
The researchers found that the majority of male participants reported having received information about the impact of cancer treatment on fertility (80%) and fertility preservation (68%); more than half of the men banked frozen sperm (54%). The women were less informed. Less than half (48%) reported that they received information about treatment impact on fertility and 14% reported that they received information about fertility preservation. Only seven women (2%) underwent fertility preservation. Predictors for receiving information about treatment impact on fertility were a pretreatment desire to have children, male gender, and being age 35 years or less at diagnosis. Predictors for receiving information about fertility preservation included male gender, age 35 years or less at diagnosis, and having no children at diagnosis.
The authors concluded that a marked gender difference was found in regard to the receipt of fertility-related information and use of fertility preservation. They stressed that an urgent need existed for the dissemination of fertility-related information to female cancer victims. This would allow them to participate in informed decisions regarding their treatment and future reproductive ability.
Source : http://emaxhealth.com//11306/gender-bias-found-fertility-counseling-cancer-survivors
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