Cancer is a problem that many people face, and it is something that is worrisome particularly for women who one day hope to be mothers. The problem with being diagnosed with cancer, aside from the fact that it is an illness that is difficult to overcome, is that the treatments often cause fertility problems. Cancer fertility problems are the result of chemotherapy and radiation treatment, and you may find that being diagnosed with cancer will bring you to the disheartening realization that you may never have children no matter how much you want to.
The good news is that the effects of the chemotherapy and cancer treatments are not always permanent. Some people that are already close to menopause will find that the treatments push them over the edge and thus prevent them from having more children. Others will find that their hormones and reproductive organs will be so permanently damaged that they can no longer have children. However, a large percentage of the people being treated for cancer will still be able to get pregnant once their treatment is complete, and thus infertility is not always the end result of cancer treatments. The fertility problems caused by the treatment may diminish after a few months to a year, and you may once again be able to conceive naturally.
The cancer treatment won’t cause your body to stop producing eggs, even though it will cause you to stop having your period. Using contraception is actually recommended during this time due to the fact that the treatments can cause damage to the growing fetus inside your womb. Sex is still something that you can enjoy during cancer treatments, though the person undergoing the treatment will usually have a much lower sex drive than normal. Many women and men find that they are not able to have sex during their treatment, as they are going through early menopause as the result of the treatments.
There are a number of factors that will affect how much damage your ovaries receive during chemotherapy and cancer treatment. The drugs given for breast cancer may not be the same as the drugs given for thyroid or throat cancer, and the cocktail of drugs will have a large effect on the reproductive system. However, the effect will vary according to the drugs given, and the dosage of drugs given to treat the cancer will also result in a different effect to the ovaries. The age of the person undergoing the treatment will have a large effect on the outcome of the treatment, and those that are nearing the age of menopause are much more likely to suffer cancer fertility problems than those who are younger.
There are a number of options that women have for maintaining their fertility during chemotherapy and cancer treatment. One option that many women prefer is having a number of eggs collected and stored. The eggs are frozen and can be used for IVF or artificial insemination once the treatment is completed. Shielding is another effective method of preventing the radiation treatment from affecting the reproductive system negatively, as the radiation is prevented from damaging the organs. Women may also freeze embryos or the tissue of their ovaries, both of which can be reinserted once the treatment is over in order to make pregnancy possible.
Many people use ovarian suppression therapy to prevent the eggs from being damaged during the chemotherapy. However, one major concern that many women face is that the cancer can actually return if they get pregnant, particularly breast cancer. This, however, has been proven to be completely untrue, and women have no need to worry that their getting pregnant will have any negative effect in causing their cancer to reemerge.
A number of women who are interested in having children once their chemotherapy is done will worry that their hormones will be affected to the point that they will no longer be able to have them. While this is true in many cases, not all women will be affected by the cancer treatment and chemotherapy. Some cancer treatments may result in women losing their fertility for a few months at a time, but the negative effects of the drugs will often wear off in a few months to a year. Some women do go into early menopause as a result of their cancer treatment, but most of these women are those who were only a few years away from the hormonal change anyways. Taking care to preserve fertility during cancer treatment may mean that you will still be able to get pregnant once the cancer is treated.
