The method helps cancer patients to have children

Hopefully there are children of young women who have to undergo chemotherapy for cancer that are opening up thanks to the "freeze" method of ovaries that has been successfully tested in the United States. This is seen as a therapy that changes the lives of women of reproductive age and faces the risk of infertility due to the negative effects of treatment drugs.

Test results published at the conference of the American Clinical Cancer Society recently showed that the "freezing" method of ovaries helped many women continue to give birth after chemotherapy. Typically, the case of Christy Wolford living in Colorado, diagnosed with level 3 negative breast cancer - the most difficult to treat and must use the strongest chemicals. The doctor said a Wolford mother was at risk of infertility by up to 90% after 6 months of chemotherapy, because these drugs could destroy eggs, even causing her to experience premature menopause.

According to experts, cancer drugs often kill cells with the highest fertility, which is considered a sign of cancer cells. However, some healthy cells, such as hair follicles and cells in the intestinal tract, are also rapidly dividing so chemicals also attack these cells, causing side effects of chemotherapy."This is really an important issue for young patients with breast cancer. They are often shocked when they are diagnosed with the disease and then know how to do chemotherapy and it can cause menopause or infertility , " said Dr. Sharon Giordano at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston added.

In clinical trials, doctors used Zoladex containing goserelin to "close" the ovary and protect it from the effects of chemicals. In other words, the patient's ovary will be "frozen" to stop producing eggs during chemotherapy and then it is activated again to perform normal reproductive function. Wolford is one of 257 volunteers who participated in the study to clarify whether the drug helps her to preserve her ability to be a mother. These people have an average age of 38, all have "hormone-negative" breast cancer, meaning they are not stimulated by female sex hormones estrogen. They were divided into two randomized groups: the Zoladex injection group and the non-Zoladex injection group during chemotherapy.

After 2 years, 21% of women taking Zoladex (22 people) were pregnant while this proportion in women who did not use Zoladex was 11% (12 people). To date, 30 babies have been born and 8 women are still pregnant. Wolford was in the group given Zoladex and she said she experienced temporary menopausal symptoms such as hot flushes and irritability, as a side effect of medication. But Wolford's hardship paid off."I have four children now. I have three more sons after chemotherapy ."

Dr. Halle Moore of Cleveland Hospital said that previously there was concern that goserelin may increase the chances of a miscarriage or complication but research shows that this chemical has no effect. Therefore, this method is considered safe, even if women have children or do not have children after cancer treatment. In addition, experts say that this is a less expensive method and a viable option for many patients.