Fertility Preservation Options for Female Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review

In 2010, it was estimated that almost 740,000 women were newly diagnosed with cancer in the United States [1]. Fortunately, advances in cancer therapy have resulted in improvements in both mortality rates and long-term survival rates. Between 2002 and 2006, death rates for all cancer sites in women decreased by 1.5% per year, almost double the decline of 0.8% per year from 1994 to 2002 [1]. The 5-year relative survival rate for all cancer sites in American women aged 20 to 49 years increased from 71.1% in 1977 to 82.1% in 2002 [2]. In children, the 5-year relative survival rate for all cancer sites improved from 58% for patients diagnosed between 1975 and 1977 to 81% for those diagnosed between 1999 and 2005 [1]. It was estimated that by 2010, 1 in every 250 young adults (15 to 45 years old) would be a childhood cancer survivor [3].