Parenthood often possible for Hodgkin's survivors

After successful treatment of Hodgkin's lymphoma, about two-thirds of patients who wish to have children manage to do so, Norwegian researchers report.

Dr. Cecilie E. Kiserud of Rikshospitalet-Radiumhospitalet Medical Center, Oslo, and colleagues note in their article in the British Journal of Cancer that the number of pregnancies and births achieved by Hodgkin's patients has rarely been examined.

To investigate further, the researchers surveyed 184 women and 269 men who had been treated for Hodgkin's disease between 1971 and 1998. The women were less than 50 years old and the men less than age 65 years at the time they were given the diagnosis.
Survey responses indicated that 120 (45 percent) of the men and 91 (50 percent) of the women attempted to become parents after their treatment.

Of this group, 76 of the men (63 percent) and 68 of the women (75 percent) had a child without use of IVF or other assisted reproduction techniques. A further 10 men and 1 woman achieved parenthood through assisted reproduction.

The type of treatment was significantly associated with subsequently successful parenthood. The highest probability was in patients treated with radiation only or with chemotherapy that had little toxic effect on reproductive organs.

In addition, in women, age at diagnosis was also a significant factor.

Kiserud told Reuters Health, "Fertility-saving tasks should be discussed with patients at risk of post-treatment infertility." That usually means freezing sperm or ovarian tissue before treatment.

"Females should be informed that both the treatment and their age at treatment influence their fertility potential," she added. The researchers note in their report that women more than 30 years old at diagnosis "constitute a subgroup for whom cryopreservation of ovarian tissue should be considered."

Men may opt for cryopreservation of semen before treatment, they add. However, because sperm production "recovers in most of them, their potential infertility after treatment is easier to deal with."

SOURCE: British Journal of Cancer, May 7, 2007.