Existing drugs may shield women from infertility after cancer

"An existing drug may one day protect pre-menopausal women from the infertility that commonly follows cancer treatments.

Women who are treated for cancer with radiation or certain chemotherapy drugs are often unable to have a baby later. A 2006 study showed that nearly 40 percent of all female breast cancer survivors experience premature ovarian failure, in which they lose normal function of their ovaries and often become infertile.

Women are born with a lifetime reserve of oocytes, or immature eggs, but those oocytes are among the most sensitive cells in the body and may be wiped out by cancer treatments..." | Learn More >>