Trial Information

Fertility in Female Cancer Survivors - Novel Assessment of Ovarian Reserve

As women across North America and Europe increasingly delay childbirth, fertility
preservation is emerging as an important issue among young breast cancer patients. The
dramatic increase in survival for the major pediatric cancers in the last 50 years has
resulted in an expanding population of childhood cancer survivors. The information currently
available to counsel these patients about the impact of treatment on their fertility is
inadequate. A significant degree of subfertility can exist prior to the onset of frank
ovarian failure, and current studies do not address this.

This study will adopt new technologies that have revolutionized the evaluation of female
fertility to assess ovarian function in young breast cancer survivors. The results will
provide new, more accurate and clinically useful information to patients and physicians
about the impact of cancer therapy on fertility. The results have the potential to influence
clinical decisions regarding cancer treatment, and the use of assisted reproductive
technologies for contemporary patients and survivors. Further, insofar as treatment advances
are designed to improve disease control while reducing toxicity, these results may serve as
the basis for better understanding the toxicity of modern therapy and provide opportunities
for improvement.