The Impact of Cancer Treatments on Male Fertility

1. The Impact of Cancer Treatments on Male Fertility

2. Introduction • Cancer treatments can really create an impact on man’s fertility. Almost certainly, your infertility doctor will explain to you whether or not cancer treatment may affect fertility or lower fertility. However, not all doctors can speak about these issues, and only the experts can give you the proper suggestions and information. Otherwise, your family members, relatives, or parents of a child who is treated for cancer can explain to you in a better way.

4. Your fertility is affected depending on the factors, including your baseline fertility, age at the time of cancer treatment, the amount (dose) of treatment, the duration (time period) of treatments, the type of cancer and treatment, the period of time that has passed since treatment, and other personal health factors.

5. It is essential to understand the recommended cancer treatment may affect male fertility before starting treatment, if at all possible. Do ask questions such as: • Could treatment raise the risk of infertility? • Are there any recommended cancer treatments that might not cause male fertility issues? • Which fertility preservation choices would you advise for people? • What fertility preservation choices available at fertility hospitals? At an infertility clinic?

6. Would you recommend any fertility expert (for example, a reproductive endocrinologist) that I could talk with to learn more about male fertility issues? • Based on the treatment I am receiving, is condom use advised or not? • Is birth control also suggested? • What are the probabilities that male fertility will return after treatment?

7. Many cancers can affect male fertility especially, Hodgkin's disease, and testicular cancer can affect many ways. Cancer treatments, such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and surgery, can create a temporary as well as a permanent harmful effect on male fertility.

8. How Cancer Treatments May Affect Your Fertility • For your future health, cancer treatments are really important. But at the same time, they may harm your reproductive organs and glands that control fertility. Changes to your fertility may be permanent or transitory. Contact your fertility doctor to learn what to expect based on your treatments.

9. Chemotherapy, specifically alkylating drugs, can damage male sperm and sperm forming cells in young men. • Endocrine therapy, which is also known as Hormone therapy, can reduce the production of male sperm. • Radiation therapy to reproductive organs and radiation near the spine, pelvis, or abdomen can lower testosterone levels and sperm counts, affecting infertility. Radiation also destroys stem cells and sperm cells that create sperm. Radiation therapy to the brain can reduce the production of sperm and testosterone. For some types of cancers, a procedure that protects the testicles from radiation is called testicular shielding.

10. Surgery for cancers for pelvic cancers, including colon, rectal, prostate, and bladder cancer, and reproductive organs, can harm the organs and lymph nodes in the pelvis or nearby nerves, which leads to infertility. • For other cancer treatments, talk with your doctors to understand whether or not other types of treatment, such as targeted cancer therapy and immunotherapy, can also impact male fertility.