Infertility and Testicular Cancer
 Three out of every four men who attempt to father a child after treatment for testicular cancer are able to do so, according to a new study.
The research, published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, shows that the ability to conceive and the time it takes to conception are strongly related to the type and intensity of treatment.
Dr. Marianne Brydoy, a researcher in the department of oncology and medical physics at Haukeland University in Bergen, Norway, said that patients who undergo low-dose chemotherapy have a much better chance of conceiving than those who have high-dose treatments. Men who have radiation therapy also had a slightly lower rate of conception, but they tended to be older, so it is unclear whether the failure to conceive was related to treatment or to naturally declining male fertility. She also stressed that, while the majority of men are able to conceive children naturally after the removal of a cancerous testicle and follow-up drug or radiation treatments, all testicular cancer patients should routinely be offered the opportunity to freeze their sperm before treatment begins.
"Because male infertility cannot be predicted on an individual basis, it is important to continue the policy of offering sperm preservation prior to treatment," Dr. Bergen said.
About one in five men turned to fertility clinics to boost their sperm production volume, or to implant sperm frozen prior to treatment, and half of these men were able to conceive with their partner. In total, 76 per cent of men who tried fathered children after treatment. Testicular cancer is rare, though it is the most common form of cancer among young men. It is usually diagnosed between the ages of 19 and 39, the peak reproductive years. The standard treatment is orchidectomy, the castration of one testicle, to remove the cancerous tumour. That is followed by chemotherapy and sometimes radiation to ensure the cancer does not spread. Additionally, many men opt for a cosmetic testicle replacement. Men are advised not to attempt to have children in the year after treatment due to fears that chemo drugs and radiation may damage sperm and cause birth defects in the baby. Men who had children prior to a diagnosis of testicular cancer, however, were best able to impregnate their partner again afterward. This is not surprising, given that men with low fertility are at higher risk of developing testicular cancer in the first place. Most cases of testicular cancer are detected by men themselves. Young men, in particular, are urged to regularly check their testicles for lumps or other notable changes.
Drew Voight - Men's Health 
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