Infertility is commonly defined by our esteemed Fertility Specialists as the inability of a couple to conceive naturally after having tried for at least a year.
Most people in this world will think about having children at some point in their lives. And although, not everybody wants to have have children immediately or perhaps ever, 99.9% want to know that they at least have an option.
There are many reasons for infertility which we have discussed in detail in our blog “7 Signs of Infertility” however, a major cause of infertility that is sometimes not expected and extremely traumatic, is cancer. As October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, we have decided to focus on this particular cancer and how you can preserve your fertility if you are every diagnosed with breast cancer, or any cancer for that matter.
If your cancer is caught in the early stages, some treatments can cause temporary infertility or they can make it very difficult for you to get pregnant, post-treatment. Other treatments, however, cause permanent and irreversible menopause, which means you will be permanently infertile.
Chemotherapy may damage some of the eggs in your ovaries and may cause your periods to become irregular or stop. If you are premenopausal before starting chemotherapy, your periods may come back after treatment ends. Even if your periods don’t come back, you may still be fertile. If you’re close to menopause when you start chemotherapy, your periods may never come back and you will be permanently infertile.
Most Onco-Specialists will always consider treating breast cancer more important than fertility concerns, BUT, you may not have to choose one over the other. There have been many women who have successfully gone through treatment and then have gone on to have a healthy baby.
Because every cancer is different, every treatment is different and every human being reacts differently to cancer and or treatment, It is extremely important that you immediately speak to our Fertility Specialists as soon as you have been diagnosed to fully understand your fertility options. Ask the following questions at your first appointment:
If your prognosis is good and pregnancy would be relatively safe, talk to fertility specialist about preserving your fertility. Please note, you will need preserve your fertility before you start treatment.
Questions you could ask here would be:
If your ovaries permanently stop producing eggs after treatment, you can still be a parent if you are open to the idea of having a child without using your eggs. There are several options:
We are on standby to answer any questions or concerns you have regarding fertility & preserving your fertility in the future, so do get in touch.
Love & Light,
The EDSA Team