[Fertility before and after treatment of patients with Leydig cell tumour]

To determine the long-term fertility status of patients treated for Leydig cell testicular tumour.

[corrected] In a series of 506 testicular tumours observed in the Midi-Pyrenées region between 1980 and 1998, 17 were Leydig cell tumours (3.3%) and constituted the study population. Andrological records were available for all patients. Information concerning fertility before and after orchidectomy was obtained by validated letter questionnaire. All patients completed the questionnaire.

The mean follow-up was 84 months (range: 36-173). The mean age at diagnosis was 32 years (range: 24-51). The presenting symptom was gynaecomastia in 9 cases (53%), enlarged testis in 4 cases (24%), scrotal pain in 2 cases (12%) and male infertility in 2 cases (12%). Before onset of their disease, 13/17 (76.5%) patients had tried to have a child and 6 (46.2%) had successfully fathered a child. After treatment of their Leydig cell tumour, 10/17 (58.8%) had tried to have a child and 7 (70%) were successful.

The population of men with Leydig cell tumour of the testis is a population with decreased fertility before treatment of the tumour. Resection of the tumour improves this situation, but 3 out of 10 patients remain infertile, indicating the need for semen storage measures in this population.