Effectiveness of sperm banking in adolescents and young adults with cancer

BACKGROUND: Improving success in the treatment of cancer has resulted in an increasing number of survivors. An important quality of life issue among younger survivors is the ability to have a family. Current gonadotoxic treatments for cancer pose a challenge to future fertility. Preservation of fertility after gonadotoxic therapy is an important consideration for these patients. In a regional center, the authors evaluated efficacy and utilization of sperm banking for preservation of male fertility in adolescents and young adults (AYA) with cancer. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was conducted to obtain data on clinical features, andrology, and fertility from patients (ages < 30 years) who cryopreserved samples of semen from 1995-2005. RESULTS: Of 821 newly diagnosed male AYA cancer patients, aged 14-30 years, only 146 (17.8%) used sperm cryopreservation technology. Patients who used their cryopreserved semen for attempted conception had a 36.4% success rate with intrauterine insemination (IUI) and a 50.0% clinical pregnancy rate with in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). CONCLUSIONS: Sperm cryopreservation by AYA males with cancer is an efficacious method for preserving future fertility. Awareness and employment of assisted reproductive technologies needs to be implemented by an interdisciplinary team of experts caring for these patients and can result in successful paternity in males after treatment for cancer.