Childbirth and Fertility Preservation Treatment after Breast Cancer Surgery at a Hospital

Abstract

The demand for fertility preservation among cancer patients has increased due to improved prognosis and delayed marriages. The number of breast cancer patients in their 30s is increasing. Of all cases, 80% undergo pre- or postoperative pharmacotherapy as standard treatment. However, chemical menopause represents a critical problem.

At our hospital, 3,445 breast cancer surgeries were performed over the past 33 years. In this study, we examined 14 of the aforementioned previous patients who were able to give birth after surgery. At the time of surgery, the mean age was 32.4 years and 10 patients were married. At the time of delivery, the mean age was 37.6 years. The average number of births was 1.29. In 2018, the average age of women at the time of birth of their first child in Japan was 30.9 years and the overall fertility rate was 1.30.

The age of the patients at the birth of their first child was 6.7 years greater than the national average, underpinning the various problems encountered in the course of breast cancer treatment and fertility preservation. This study aimed to report on the fertility-preserving treatment approach at our hospital.