Private MD News

Researchers say new fertility treatment is going mainstream

Category: Infertitlity Hormone Testing

Many women who undergo treatment for cancer or other conditions that take a heavy toll on the body end up receiving FSH test results indicating impaired fertility later in life. However, experts say a new fertility-preserving therapy is starting to become mainstream and may give women many more options when it comes to preserving fertility.

A team of Italian researchers recently presented evidence at the annual meeting of the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology of the first live birth resulting from cryopreservation of reproductive tissue. The team said this is evidence of how far the procedure has come in a relatively short period of time.

In the procedure, women who are about to undergo medical treatments that may harm their reproductive system have their ovaries removed, cryogenically frozen and stored until the treatment is over. When the woman is ready to start a family, the ovaries are then thawed and grafted back into place.

The treatment could help many women who are about to undergo treatments that are expected to impair fertility preserve their ability to conceive. This may help them avoid receiving unfavorable FSH test results later in life.