Egg retrieval with cryopreservation does not delay breast cancer treatment
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 11, 2026
Fertility Preservation Through Oocyte Vitrification: Clinical and Laboratory Perspectives
Published on: September 16, 2021
Andrea Madrigrano1, Lynn Westphal, Irene Wapnir
1Department of Surgery, Stanford University Medical Center, 300 Pasteur Dr, RM H3625, Stanford, CA 94305-5655, USA.
Background:
Infertility is a concern to young women diagnosed with breast cancer. Advances in fertility technology have made it possible to bank fertilized embryos.
Methods:
Twenty-three women, ages 27 to 40 years, underwent stimulation/oocyte retrieval before the start of adjuvant therapies. Time intervals between retrieval and therapeutic procedures were analyzed.
Results:
The average stimulation to egg retrieval was 11.5 days (range 9-20 d). The average time interval from first evaluation to oocyte retrieval was 33.3 days (range 10-65 d). Overall, the mean time from definitive surgery to initiation of chemotherapy was 46.8 days (n = 20). For 6 patients referred by surgeons, the mean time from fertility consult to retrieval was 48.8 days (range 16-118 d), and from definitive surgery to initiation of chemotherapy was 45 days (range 15-93 d).
Conclusions:
Egg retrieval cryopreservation can be integrated with breast cancer work-up and surgical procedures. Early referrals to a fertility specialist by surgeons will help patients' safeguard future childbearing.
