Counseling and consenting women with cancer on their oncofertility options: A clinical perspective

Abstract

Over the past decade, professional and lay organizations have raised awareness of the damaging effects some cancer treatments can have on the fertility of young women. Despite this progress, counseling and consenting cancer patients about their fertility remains complicated. Literature from the American Society for Clinical Oncology [1] (ASCO) outlines treatment regimens that may affect fertility; however, these regimens continue to evolve, making it difficult to predict how an individual's fertility may be compromised. After fertility counseling, some women elect to preserve gametes or embryos prior to cancer treatment, but doing so does not guarantee future fertility. © 2010 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.