An overview of sperm cryopreservation services for adolescent cancer patients in the United Kingdom.
For young men, a consequence of surviving childhood malignancy can be iatrogenic infertility. Current health policies focus on the elimination of "post code lotteries" in cancer services. The extent to which sperm cryopreservation services for young men at risk of infertility from cancer treatment are provided and standardised within the United Kingdom and Ireland, was therefore the subject of this research. This paper draws on data from a three-stage study to describe sperm cryopreservation services for adolescent males, identifying current provision of sperm cryopreservation at the majority of United Kingdom Children's Cancer Study Group (UKCCSG) centres. In particular, the ways in which services are managed and written information provided to patients and their families was focused upon. Nurses from 18 of 22 UKCCSG centres responded to a questionnaire, six nurses from the replying centres participated in further, focused interviews. Results suggested that, during a 1 year period, approximately 118 adolescent males within the United Kingdom and Ireland could potentially have benefited from cryopreservation services. Of the responding centres, 15 offered a cryopreservation service. However, the majority (n=14) lacked consistency and co-ordination in their service provision. The provision of written information to this patient group was limited and analysis revealed all was of a poor quality. Findings from the study led the researchers to conclude that all young men at risk of iatrogenic sterility from cancer treatment could benefit from the production and systematic application of national guidelines and that standardising sperm cryopreservation services would fit with current health policy.
Wilford
Howard
H
Piam Brown Ward and Southampton General Hospital, Tremona Road, Southampton, SO16 6YD, UK.
Hunt
Jane
J
D000293:Adolescent; D016497:Adolescent Health Services / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D015925:Cryopreservation / Q000592:standards* / Q000639:trends; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012662:Semen Preservation / Q000592:standards*; D013074:Sperm Banks; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013736:Testicular Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery; D006113:United Kingdom