Procedures for fertility preservation in female cancer patients

Abstract

n REVIEWS n Modern anticancer drugs and novel oncotherapeutic methods have resulted in increasingly better survival rates and quality of life. However, this therapeutic success has been accompanied by the loss of fertility and premature menopause in many women cured of their disease. Consequently, efforts to preserve reproductive functions are of increasing importance [1][2][3][4][5][6]. The significance of such research is further emphasized by current statistical data showing that approximately one in 700 adults is a survivor of a certain childhood malignant disease. It is estimated that by the year 2010 this proportion will significantly increase and almost one in 250 adults will suffer from the late negative consequences of treatments of childhood cancer, includ-