Fertility Clinic Gives Sandoval Future Options

When Thanaydi Sandoval turned 18, she was 1 week away from starting her freshman year of college. She was nervous and excited about what the future held for her. 

But everything changed on her birthday when she learned she had Ewing sarcoma, a cancer of the soft tissue. 

Sandoval’s doctor at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital talked with her about how they might treat her cancer. He also asked her if she planned to have children someday. That is because some cancer treatments may affect a patient’s fertility.

Sandoval visited the St. Jude Fertility Clinic. This clinic helps St. Jude patients and families understand how cancer treatment may affect a patient’s ability to have children in the future. The team provides testing, counseling, and education to help patients learn about ways they might protect their fertility. 

How cancer treatment may affect fertility

Some chemotherapy medicines can harm the ovaries. Ovaries are glands that hold and release eggs needed for pregnancy. They also make hormones that help prepare a female’s body to have a baby. 

Certain medicines may lower the number of eggs the body makes or change how the ovaries send hormone signals. Radiation treatment to the pelvic area or to the part of the brain that controls the ovaries can also affect a female’s ability to have children.

Staff in the St. Jude Fertility Clinic talked with Sandoval about egg freezing as a fertility preservation option. She chose to have some of her eggs retrieved and frozen for possible use later in life. St. Jude covers the cost of egg retrieval and cryopreservation, as well as long-term storage until age 35. 

“My doctor explained that I had this option of freezing my eggs before receiving treatment,” Sandoval says. “He said that it would possibly be better than trying to have a family without this option.”

It is possible that treatment will not affect Sandoval’s fertility. She may be able to get pregnant and give birth without using her preserved eggs. But if problems arise, she can use the eggs that were saved to try to get pregnant. The success rate is good, but there are no guarantees.

“It made sense. I wanted to preserve that ability and lower the risk of having any fertility issues,” Sandoval says.

How egg retrieval works

Fertility preservation options depend on the patient’s age, gender, and type of treatment, says Kari Bjornard, MD, MPH director of the St. Jude Fertility Clinic. 

Egg freezing has 3 main steps:

1. Hormone shots: For about 2 weeks, patients get hormone injections. These hormones help the ovaries develop more mature eggs than normal. The care team checks progress with blood tests and ultrasound scans.
2. Collecting the eggs: When the eggs are ready, a doctor uses a thin needle and ultrasound to find the ovaries. The needle goes through the vaginal wall to take fluid out of the ovaries. This fluid contains the eggs. Patients get medicine to help them sleep or feel calm during this step.
3. Storing the eggs: Once the eggs are collected, they are frozen and kept safe in a special lab. The eggs can be stored for many years until the patient wants to use them.

Sandoval had her eggs removed before her cancer treatment started. The St. Jude Fertility Clinic provided guidance and support. Sandoval had some pain and fatigue. She said the hormones caused some mood swings. But Sandoval is glad she went through the egg-freezing process. 

Planning for the future

Sandoval encourages other cancer patients to ask lots of questions about fertility preservation. 

“If I could talk to my younger self, I’d say, ‘Get as much information as you can, even if you feel overwhelmed,’” she says. “Also, lean on people around you. Ask family or friends to help ask questions or take notes. I’m so grateful my mom was there to support me.”

Today, Sandoval teaches fifth grade near Boston and hopes to be a mom someday. She is thankful for the St. Jude Fertility Clinic and that she was able to freeze her eggs. 

If you or your child has been diagnosed with cancer or a serious illness, talk with your care team about fertility and family planning options before treatment starts. If fertility preservation is not possible, you can look into adoption, donor eggs, or donor sperm. 

And talk to your team about birth control if you are sexually active, because cancer treatment may not affect your fertility. 

Planning for the future can help you feel more in control during treatment.