[Fran]

Hi everyone,

This is a reminder that we have another power hour lined up this month and we will be answering all of your questions on fertility after a cancer diagnosis.
This session is scheduled for 12pm on Tuesday 24th February.
All you need to do is join the session and post your questions to us in this power hour thread!
We look forward to seeing you all next week!

Fran

[Fran]

Hi everyone, just a reminder of todays power hour session that will be going live at 12pm. Please come along with all of your questions on fertility and having a family after a cancer diagnosis and we will be on hand to answer them over the hour.
Chat soon!
Fran

[Fran]

Hi everyone, We are now live for today’s power hour session! Feel free to post your questions in this thread and we will answer them live over the next hour.

thanks,
Fran

[Fran]

We have our first question that has been submitted.

Can I have IVF after breast cancer?

[Fran]

Thank you for this. You can have IVF and fertility treatment after breast cancer but it does also depend on the cancer treatment, medical history and your circumstances. This would be something that would need to be discussed with your doctor so that the best plan can be put in place for you. Some people are also recommended to freeze their eggs before having treatment for breast cancer so that they can use those eggs after in fertility treatment. This is because chemotherapy or radiotherapy may impact your ovarian reserve – but again this will be discussed with you by your clinical team.

[Fran]

Another submitted question.

What is meant by Fertility preservation? What will happen to my eggs?

[Fran]

This is a great question. When we talk about fertility preservation, what we mean is that we are taking eggs or sperm and cryopreserving them so that we are preserving your fertility. This can be for a number of reasons including medical and social. In the case of today’s topic – this often takes place before people start chemotherapy, radiotherapy or surgery for cancer treatment. You will go through a round of stimulation – much like you would with IVF but at egg collection we will take your eggs and place them in the freezer so that you have the option of using them once you have had your cancer treatment. When/if you are ready to proceed, we then thaw out the eggs and fertilise with sperm (IVF) and then create an embryo to transfer to your womb – all dependant on your medical situation and history.

[Fran]

What happens if i had to have my womb removed as part of my cancer surgery? what are my options for starting a family?

[Fran]

Thank you – in this case, it would be quite likely that you might be recommended to look at surrogacy as an option to start a family. This is when another woman carries the pregnancy for you. This does also come down to medical history and situation so it would be best to be discussed with your clinical team about your options. You could also look at adoption as a way to start your family too.

[Fran]

You may find the following from Macmillan helpful when looking at fertility and cancer. https://www.macmillan.org.uk/cancer-information-and-support/impacts-of-cancer/fertility

We also have information on our information hub too that may be useful.

[Fran]

That’s all that we have time for today! thank you for all of the questions that were submitted and for joining us. Next months power hour will be all about Endometriosis.

Take care,

Fran

[Author]

Posts