Fertility issues in patients with prostate cancer.
OBJECTIVE
To describe fertility issues, only rarely discussed with patients with prostate cancer, although paternity after treatment might be an important component of quality of life for some, as exemplified by two of our patients.


METHODS
During pretreatment counselling two patients with newly diagnosed prostate cancer initiated the discussion of paternity after treatment. Patient 1 then opted for radiotherapy as the treatment least likely to damage fertility, whereas patient 2 had semen cryopreservation before external beam radiotherapy combined with 6 months adjuvant hormone treatment.


RESULTS
Patient 1 became a father to a healthy child 9 months after starting radiotherapy, with conception two days after he had received one session of brachytherapy with (192)Ir (total dose 10 Gy, testicular dose, 0.1 Gy). Patient 2 fathered a child 36 months after completing external beam radiotherapy (total dose 74 Gy, testicular dose 1.2-2.3 Gy), which was combined with medical castration of 6 months' duration.


CONCLUSIONS
Fertility issues should be considered in patients before curative treatment of prostate cancer.
Steinsvik
Eivind A
EA
The Norwegian Radium Hospital, Cancer Clinic, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
Fosså
Sophie D
SD
Lilleby
Wolfgang
W
Eilertsen
Karsten
K
D001918:Brachytherapy; D003376:Counseling; D005298:Fertility / Q000528:radiation effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D012662:Semen Preservation; D013091:Spermatogenesis / Q000528:radiation effects