A total of 50.7% of cancer patients said a provider had discussed fertility preservation options before starting cancer treatment, according to a study published Nov. 12 in JAMA Network Open.
Researchers from academic institutions across the country analyzed data from 473 patients participating in the Reproductive Health After Cancer Diagnosis & Treatment Study. Patients represented in the analysis were male and female cancer patients diagnosed between 2013 and 2021 who were ages 18-49 and 18-42, respectively.
Here are five notes from the study:
- Data from responses to the following question were analyzed for the study: "Did a healthcare professional involved in your cancer care talk with you about options to preserve your fertility (e.g., sperm banking or freezing of eggs, embryos, or ovarian tissue) before you started cancer treatment?"
- Of the 473 patient responses, 240 reported a cancer care provider had discussed fertility preservation options before treatment.
- Fertility preservation discussions varied by age, pregnancy history, marital status and cancer type.
- Among cancer type, the fertility preservation discussion rate was:
- Testis: 95.6%
- Hodgkin lymphoma: 77.3%
- Breast: 71.1%
- Uterus or endometrium: 70%
- Leukemia: 64.7%
- Brain: 57.1%
- Non-Hodgkin lymphoma: 56.3%
- Cervix uteri: 55%
- Other: 49.1%
- Colorectum: 44.2%
- Ovary: 21.4%
- Lung or bronchus: 21%
- Thyroid: 3.6%
- Limitations to the study include its reliance on patient recollection as opposed to information documented in an electronic medical record. Additionally, the study did not "evaluate how differences across health care settings or clinical factors may contribute" to fertility preservation discussion trends, the study authors wrote.
Read the full study here.