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Updated: Feb 26, 2026

Fertility Preservation Through Oocyte Vitrification: Clinical and Laboratory Perspectives
Published on: September 16, 2021
The Role of Oncofertility Clinics in Facilitating Access to Reproductive Specialists
Eduardo Hariton1,2, Pietro Bortoletto1,2, Eden R Cardozo1
1Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Vincent Obstetrics and Gynecology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
Purpose:
To determine the impact of the establishment of a dedicated oncofertility clinic on the frequency of patient referrals for fertility preservation (FP) consultation and the time from patient referral to consultation.
Methods:
A retrospective chart review of all women aged 21 to 44 years with an active cancer diagnosis who were referred for FP consultation from 2011 to 2015.
Results:
A total of 6895 female patients eligible for FP were seen at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center. Of those eligible, a total of 209 patients were referred for FP consultation with 150 included in the final analysis. Since the establishment of the oncofertility clinic, the mean time to nonemergent consultation with a reproductive endocrinologist decreased by 27%, from 10.4 to 7.6 days (P = .03). Furthermore, the proportion of reproductive-aged females seen at the MGH Cancer Center referred for FP consultation increased from 1.7% to 3.0% (P < .01).
Conclusion:
A dedicated oncofertility clinic increases physician referrals for FP and decreases the mean time to consultation, improving access to FP consultation for reproductive-aged women with cancer.
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