Most young women diagnosed with breast cancer in an early stage have a high chance of becoming pregnant after treating the disease, suggests a study presented at the last congress of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (Asco), held in June in the United States. Of the patients evaluated, 73% managed to get pregnant and 65% gave birth to a live baby.
According to experts, this is the first study with more than ten years of follow-up that evaluates the fertility in patients under 40 years of age with non-metastatic disease.
“Most previous studies took into account a shorter follow-up and did not have such a specific focus on the gestational part”, analyzes oncologist Patrícia Taranto, from Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein. “The research presents a hopeful scenario for these young patients with early-stage breast cancer, as the findings suggest that it is possible to reconcile health care and the desire to become pregnant.”
Treatment of this tumor impacts fertility because chemotherapy can lead to suppression of ovarian function, inducing early menopause. In tumors called positive hormone receptors, therapy to reduce the levels of hormones that “feed” the disease is also capable of causing ovarian failure.
However, there are ways to reduce this risk by combining breast cancer treatment with medications to protect ovarian function. Another important ally is fertility counseling, with egg or embryo freezing.
THE study evaluated data from 1,213 women diagnosed with non-metastatic breast tumors between 2006 and 2016. During this period, 197 tried to get pregnant, and the majority succeeded. Only 28% had undergone treatments to preserve fertility and the chances of pregnancy were higher for this group and younger women.
“It is possible to get pregnant without fertility preservation,” explains Taranto. “But with prior freezing of eggs or embryos, the chances increase if there are problems with inducing early menopause due to the treatment.”
Therefore, the authors reinforce the importance of greater access to this information and services for preservation and guidance on fertility. “It is important that these patients have access to both emotional support and guidance at the beginning of the diagnosis so that they can take precautions before starting treatment and plan for the possibility of freezing eggs or embryos, regardless of the type of tumor, for a possible future pregnancy.”
It is worth remembering that fertility preservation procedures do not increase the risk of tumor recurrence nor impact the aggressiveness of the disease. Today, it is possible to do them more quickly so as not to delay the treatment of the disease.
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This content was originally published in Most young women can get pregnant after breast cancer on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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