[Oncofertility Care in Japan Update-What We Aim by Public Funding]

Fertility preservation such as sperm and oocyte cryopreservation are not covered by public medical insurance, and the financial burden on patients and their families has been a problem. Various public subsidy programs have been implemented at the local government level, and in April 2021, the Research Promotion of Fertility Preservation for Childhood and AYA Generation Cancer Patients was launched. This project provides uniform national public subsidies for various types of fertility preservation, but it is important to note that it is positioned as a research promotion project to establish evidence for fertility preservation, rather than a subsidy for therapies with established efficacy. Therefore, hospital and clinics that provide fertility preservation must participate in a oncofertility network of each prefecture and obtain institutional accreditation, as well as follow up patients over the long term and keep information on prognosis, pregnancy, and childbearing registered in the Japan Oncofertility Registry(JOFR). For this purpose, the understanding and cooperation of not only facilities that provide fertility preservation, but also cancer treatment facilities, patients, and their families are essential, and the expansion of systems and projects for this purpose is currently under consideration.