Current guidelines recommend that all cancer patients should have access to sperm, egg and embryo storage when considering cancer treatment that could damage fertility. But these are not always widely available or funded, according to a new survey.
The findings show that the NHS needs to step up its game in fully funding fertility services for patients with cancer, according to the report by the Royal Colleges of Physicians, Radiologists, and Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.
Every year in the UK, eleven thousand patients under 40 years old are diagnosed with cancer. And while cure rates are getting better and better, infertility following treatment can be a source of great distress. Many cancer treatments will not affect fertility at all. However, chemotherapy and some forms of radiotherapy and surgery can damage the testicles or ovaries.
And while it is not usually possible to prevent this damage occurring, it is possible to prepare for it, in men by banking sperm, and in women it is possible (where a partner is present) to create embryos using IVF, which can then be stored, or more experimentally to freeze eggs or even portions of the ovary. Once treatment is complete, it is then possible to thaw the sperm, embryos or eggs and restore fertility.
Now, the report suggests that patients need to be fully informed about the risks of cancer treatment on fertility, that a national policy on sperm, egg and embryo storage is needed and that accessible funding procedures for patients need to be developed.
Sperm banking is widely available in the UK, but not always free of charge. Embryo storage is often, although not always available and funded. There are no routine NHS facilities for banking eggs or portions of ovary, although these are often available in the private sector.
“More and more young people with cancer can now be cured with modern treatments – but this success has sometimes been achieved at a price, particularly with regard to fertility,” said researcher Dr Ben Mead. “Techniques are available, or in development, to store sperm, eggs, embryos or even parts of an ovary that can then restore fertility after treatment. What is missing is a national strategy.”
Dr Michael Williams, Vice-President of the Royal College of Radiologists, believes it is shocking that arguments over funding still limit patients’ access to fertililty preserving treatments.
“Sperm freezing is well established, simple and effective. It should be available to all as recommended by three reports from NICE, and there should be a national strategy to fund other options for patients,” he said.
Professor Richard Anderson of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists agreed.
“The irreversible effects of cancer treatment on fertility will have long-term implications for men and women,” he said. “Sperm banking should be routinely available to all men and funded as part of their cancer treatment and there are very promising and increasingly successful developments in new options for women.”
To read more about how sperm banking preserves cancer patients’ fertility, Click Here.
