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Fertility Communication and High-Risk Patients

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Oncofertility Communication

Abstract

Women who have a high-risk family history of breast or ovarian cancer or carry deleterious genetic mutations develop these malignancies at a higher rate and younger age than the general population. Prophylactic interventions—including tamoxifen use and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy—can reduce the risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer but are undertaken during reproductive years and may compromise young patients’ ability to have children. Thus, these young women—called “previvors”—face difficult decisions regarding the balance between preventive treatment and future childbearing and breastfeeding. Oncofertility may particularly benefit this group of women, by allowing them to take a proactive approach that integrates cancer prevention and fertility preservation concerns. In this chapter, we discuss when the issue of fertility might be raised during a high-risk consultation. We also present two case examples illustrating the importance of discussing fertility preservation with patients at high risk for developing breast or ovarian cancer.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Oncofertility Consortium NIH 5UL1DE019587 and the Specialized Cooperative Centers Program in Reproduction and Infertility Research NIH U54HD076188.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, 300 E Chicago Ave, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA

    Natalia C. Llarena B.A. & Jacqueline S. Jeruss M.D., Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Natalia C. Llarena B.A.
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  2. Jacqueline S. Jeruss M.D., Ph.D.
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jacqueline S. Jeruss M.D., Ph.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Obstetrics and Gynecology, Feinberg School of Medicine Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    Teresa K Woodruff

  2. Division of General Internal Medicine, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Ctr Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    Marla L Clayman

  3. Oncofertility Consortium, Feinberg School of Medicine Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    Kate E Waimey

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© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Llarena, N.C., Jeruss, J.S. (2014). Fertility Communication and High-Risk Patients. In: Woodruff, T., Clayman, M., Waimey, K. (eds) Oncofertility Communication. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8235-2_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8235-2_5

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-8234-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-8235-2

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