As a result of recent research that has been
performed in the field of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility we now have fertility preservation options
that can be employed very effectively – preferably before – but
frequently even after chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery. In the
event that male patients contact us prior to undergoing treatment,
we can offer sperm banking, freezing of testicular tissue, or
testicular sperm extraction.
Women who seek assistance prior to
chemotherapy or radiation can have their oocytes retrieved for
either oocyte cryopreservation or embryo cryopreservation. In
addition, some women who are going to subsequently undergo
chemotherapy or radiation therapy may elect to have treatment with
medications such as Depot Lupron, in the hope of minimizing the
adverse effect of the cancer therapy on their ovaries.
Similarly,
women who are going to undergo radiation therapy may desire to have
their ovaries surgically relocated within the pelvis. Ovaries can
be placed higher in the pelvis and potentially out of the area that
will subsequently be affected by radiation, minimizing the overall
dose of radiation they receive.
The resumption of normal testicular or ovarian
function following chemotherapy, radiation, or surgical treatment is
very variable. Even if hormonal production becomes normal again,
that does not guarantee that gamete (sperm and egg) production will do so as well.
Fortunately, men do occasionally recover enough sperm production to
cause a pregnancy – sometimes even without fertility treatment.
Women, depending upon their resulting ovarian function, can
sometimes conceive naturally as well. Other patients may require
the use of gametes or embryos that were frozen prior to their cancer
treatment. Even in the worst case scenario, in which either the man
or the woman has no remaining reproductive function following
treatment, successful fertility treatment is usually still available
in the form of donor eggs, donor embryos, donor sperm, or
traditional surrogacy.
Safeguarding Your Plans for a Family
Oocyte (Egg) Cryopreservation
TFC is one of only a few fertility centers in the U.S. which has had babies delivered from eggs that we had frozen in our laboratory.is TFC uses the most advanced freezing techniques to minimize damage to the frozen eggs. In the past, preserving unfertilized eggs was unreliable because (damaging) ice crystals would form during the process. Vitrification, a new technology, is a flash-freezing process that produces markedly improved results.
Embryo Cryopreservation
An embryo forms when a sperm fertilizes an egg. During IVF, this fertilization process occurs in the lab. If you choose to freeze embryos to preserve fertility rather than eggs, we will need to obtain a sperm specimen from your partner. After egg retrieval, we add the sperm to the eggs and then freeze embryos that develop normally.
Sperm Cryopreservation
Men can also choose to freeze their sperm prior to cancer or medical treatments that can negatively impact fertility. Austin IVF (the fertility lab associated with TFC ) will provide detailed instructions on collecting a semen sample at home -- or in a special room at the laboratory. Please note that you You will need a simple blood test to screen you forinfectious diseases prior to freezing your sperm.
