HOW DOES BREAST CANCER AFFECT FERTILITY?

• Breast cancer may not directly affect a woman's fertility. However, breast cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormone therapy etc. have negative effects on women's fertility. When a woman is first diagnosed with breast cancer, she needs to be informed about how her fertility may be affected during treatment, especially if she is young and of reproductive age. Chemotherapy and radiotherapy act against the rapidly dividing cells of the body. This helps to control or stop the multiplication of cancer cells, but the treatment can also affect the body's normally dividing cells and can damage the gametes – the eggs and sperm – which are dividing cells. This can lead to depletion of these cells and therefore affect fertility. Women are born with a finite number of eggs, and in some women treatment with chemotherapy and radiotherapy can lead to a complete or partial loss of fertility potential.

Fertility preservation

Fertility preservation is an effort to help people preserve their fertility, or their ability to reproduce. The Centre for Reproductive Medicine and Fetal Medicine - Dr. Alexandros Traianos bridges the specialties of oncology and reproductive endocrinology, with the aim of maximising the reproductive potential of cancer patients and cancer survivors. It has emerged as a way of dealing with the uncertainty surrounding pregnancy and parenthood. Techniques such as egg freezing and embryo freezing can give hope to breast cancer patients who plan to conceive later. The global uptake of egg or embryo freezing among cancer patients is around 10%. There is growing awareness of fertility preservation among cancer patients and the oncology community. Breast cancer has become considerably more common among young women today. At the same time, with improvements in cancer management, survival rates are also rising. Although there is no single cause for the development of breast cancer, an unhealthy lifestyle, excessive alcohol consumption, a family history of breast cancer etc. are some of the risk factors that can increase the likelihood of developing the disease.

Other options

Not every cancer patient will have the opportunity to preserve their fertility before chemotherapy or radiotherapy. There are many cases in which it is too late to decide to preserve eggs or embryos. For those who were not fortunate enough to have frozen eggs or embryos before cancer treatment, and whose gametes have been completely depleted, IVF with donor eggs is a very good solution. Egg donation is often a successful treatment for infertility in women who can no longer produce healthy eggs. Cancer is a disease in which the stage at which it is detected can determine the patient's outcome. Early detection can help prevent serious complications and allow a faster recovery than when it is diagnosed at a later stage. Keeping an eye on your body, maintaining a healthy diet, avoiding excessive alcohol consumption and seeking medical advice in case of any abnormality in the body can make a difference in the fight against cancer. Finally, awareness of and access to existing advanced technologies are important for patients who are going to undergo chemotherapy and radiotherapy, even for non-cancerous diseases. At the "Dr. Alexandros Traianos" Centre for Reproductive Medicine we understand the anxiety and negative emotions that such a situation can bring. We are here to help you explore your options and achieve your goals. For information, call (+30) 2310 277 032 or send an email to alexandrostraianos@gmail.com.