Update on fertility preservation in young women undergoing breast cancer and ovarian cancer therapy

Purpose of review The purpose of the article is to review the available options for fertility preservation in patients with breast and ovarian cancer, and the special issues faced by BRCA mutation carriers. Recent findings Future fertility is an important consideration for many young patients with cancer. There are both experimental and standard available strategies for patients with breast and ovarian cancer to preserve fertility, and each has potential advantages and disadvantages. Summary Embryo cryopreservation is widely available with a highly successful track record. Improvements in laboratory techniques have led to oocyte cryopreservation recently being recategorized as nonexperimental. Conservative gynecologic surgery is a standard consideration for patients with stage I ovarian cancer who desire future fertility. Ovarian tissue cryopreservation as well as ovarian suppression with luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analogs during chemotherapy are considered experimental methods at this time, although recent data suggest both safety and efficacy for the use of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analogs in women receiving (neo)adjuvant chemotherapy for breast cancer. Special issues should be considered for women with BRCA mutations because of the need to undergo preventive surgery at young age. Multidisciplinary teams and well functioning relationships between the oncology and reproductive units are crucial to manage the fertility issues of young women with cancer.