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Stop fertility treatments after diagnosis?

Page last modified on: September 17, 2008
Question from Corallee: I don't know what to do. I've been having fertility treatments and was diagnosed with DCIS. Do I have to stop my fertility treatments? I'm 43 and this might be my last chance to have a child.
Answers —Kutluk Oktay, M.D.: A patient like you should freeze your embryos until your treatment is complete, which may be just surgery. Then after that, you could use those embryos to get pregnant. Having said that, some oncologists may even agree to allow the woman to get pregnant immediately after full surgical treatment of DCIS, because the disease is not invasive. So at the least you should consider freezing your embryos if the doctors want you to delay child bearing. The reason for that is you're 43 and your fertility is already diminished. If you keep waiting by just aging alone you will be less fertile. You need full evaluation and treatment without delay, because whatever chance you have now is going to be even less 3 months or 6 months from now. And at age 45, your chances will go down to near zero.
Leslie Schover, Ph.D.: Although it's not usually a woman's first choice, it might be worth remembering that you could still be a good candidate for carrying a pregnancy that was conceived with an egg from a donor and your husband's sperm.

On Wednesday, September 10, 2008, our Ask-the-Expert Online Conference was called Fertility and Pregnancy. Kutluk Oktay, M.D. and Leslie Schover, Ph.D. answered your questions about breast cancer treatments that can affect your fertility, options for preserving your fertility, being treated for breast cancer while pregnant, and more.

The materials presented in these conferences do not necessarily reflect the views of breastcancer.org. A qualified healthcare professional should be consulted before using any therapeutic product or regimen discussed. All readers should verify all information and data before employing any therapies described here.

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Meet the Experts

Kutluk Oktay, M.D.Kutluk Oktay, M.D. is a professor of Obstetrics & Gynecology and the director of the Division of Reproductive Medicine & Infertility at New York Medical College.

Leslie R. Schover, Ph.D.Leslie R. Schover, Ph.D. is a renowned psychologist with a special interest in helping people resolve or manage their sexual problems, especially those problems connected with a chronic illness such as cancer.

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