[Fertility in testicular cancer patients]

Testicular cancer(TC)is the most common and curable cancer affecting men of reproductive age. Successful treatment approaches have resulted in longer life expectancy in TC survivors. The most frequently used treatment for TC is a combination of inguinal orchiectomy, and either radiotherapy or cisplatin-based chemotherapy. In many TC patients, sperm quality is already abnormal and there may even be a lack of viable spermatozoa at the time of diagnosis. Therefore, the effect of cancer treatment on fertility is a potentially significant issue. Fertility preservation in these men has become essential and needs to be discussed prior to the start of cancer treatment. The only currently established fertility preservation method is the cryopreservation of sperm before therapy. For most patients seeking cryopreservation, the semen sample is collected via masturbation. If the patient is unable to ejaculate for any reason, other techniques such as vibratory stimulation and electroejaculation can be performed. In azoospermic or severely oligozoospermic patients, testicular sperm extraction at the time of the inguinal orchiectomy is a useful technique for obtaining spermatozoa before cytotoxic therapy. We herein present an overview of the current topics on fertility in TC patients, including the effects of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. We also describe the strategy for fertility preservation in these patients.