WE WILL MAINTAIN YOUR REPRODUCTIVE POTENTION PRIOR TO RADIATION – OR CHEMOTHERAPY BY FREEZING YOUR SPERM AND/OR EMBRYO
- Treatment of cancers (using chemotherapy, radiation therapy) may adversely affect your ability to produce sperm and egg cells which, in turn, may lead to more difficulty achieving pregnancy or, in many cases, total infertility in both women and men;
- You can maintain/preserve your reproductive potential by cryopreserving your sperm, egg, or embryo;
- This must take place prior to radiation therapy or chemotherapy;
- Sperm, egg, and embryo cryopreservation performed prior to cancer treatment may be the only option to become a parent after cancer treatment.
MALE
How successful is cryopreservation?
Sperm—after freezing and thawing, about 50% of the spermatozoa will retain their motility. This number of sperm is sufficient to fertilize eggs. One ejaculate is usually sufficient for one insemination, though we can freeze ejaculates in multiple containers so that each container may contain a sufficient sperm to achieve fertilization and pregnancy. If necessary, each ejaculate can provide several chances at pregnancy through in vitro fertilization (IVF) using the intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) method. The IVF/ICSI pregnancy success rate varies with the woman’s age between 50% (in younger women <35 years of age) and 5% (in women of more advanced age >40 years).
What must done for sperm cryopreservation?
To plan sperm cryopreservation, you or your physician must contact the ReproART Center to make an appointment. In the center, you will submit your semen sample, followed by immediate sample testing and freezing. These are all performed at our center by our highly trained staff. There are charges for the sperm testing, sperm freezing (cryopreservation) and there are periodic charges for storing your cryopreserved sample(s).
FEMALE
How successful is cryopreservation?
Embryos — currently at ReproART, IVF cycles typically result in between 1 and 20 blastocysts (a stage in the development of an embryo). Upon thawing cryopreserved blastocysts, the survival rate at ReproART is usually 95% or better. By transferring two such blastocysts, at ReproART, pregnancy will occur with the same incidence as during the transfer of fresh (never frozen) blastocysts, that is, 65% (in women <35 years of age) or 5% (in women <35 years of age).
Eggs prior to fertilization— after 6-12 days of ovarian stimulation with injectable medications, we collect about 15 eggs (more from younger patients, fewer with older patients). Their numbers vary depending on the age of the woman undergoing treatment (as many as 35 (or more) in young women and <5 in women of more advanced age). It is possible to freeze (cryopreserve) all mature eggs in order to preserve a woman’s fertility even when she is not married or has no male partner. Following egg cryopreservation, usually 80-90% of the eggs survive after freezing and thawing. These results may also vary from woman to woman.
What must done for embryo and egg cryopreservation?
You or your physician must contact the ReproART Center to coordinate egg or embryo cryopreservation depending on whether you have a partner or a donor. To achieve a sufficient number of eggs, after examination/testing, you will be treated with injected fertility drugs that lead to ovarian stimulation. This type of treatment is monitored by your reproductive physician at ReproART using ultrasound and laboratory testing. In 6-12 days, eggs are removed from the ovaries under light anesthesia (conscious sedation). These eggs may be frozen prior to fertilization or may be fertilized (with sperm from a husband, a partner or a donor), Once eggs are fertilized, embryos may be frozen at the blastocyst stage. Once eggs or embryos are cryopreserved following these procedures, you can start your cancer treatment. There are fees for examination, medications, monitoring your response to medications and egg collection, embryo culture (optional), and cryopreservation. There are also periodic charges for storing your cryopreserved sample(s).
IF YOU OPT FOR CRYOPRESERVATION AT REPROART, WE WILL COORDINATE WITH YOUR ONCOLOGIST TO DEVELOP A PLAN FOR CRYOPRESERVATION PRIOR TO THE BEGINNING OF YOUR CANCER TREATMENT.
WE DO NOT WANT TO DELAY THE START OF YOUR CANCER TREATMENT IF YOUR ONCOLOGIST DOES NOT RECOMMEND A DELAY, AND WE WILL SPARE NO EFFORT TO SERVE YOU WITHIN THE SHORTEST POSSIBLE TIMEFRAME.