This type of surgery is the only way to restore fertility for women who have undergone radiation or chemotherapy, the team said. These treatments – while often successful in combating cancer – also render 96 percent of the women infertile because they destroy ovarian cells.
“This is a huge result both from a professional and an emotional perspective,” the team said, adding that most women after successful cancer treatments are dismayed to find out that they can no longer have children.
The procedure begins before chemotherapy or radio therapy, when surgeons remove part of the ovarian tissue and freeze it after carefully checking it for cancer cells. Following the cancer therapy, the tissue is re-implanted in the ovary and in 23 percent of the cases normal ovarian function will be restored in four to five months.
The doctors said that the 23 percent success rate is considered excellent in a procedure that has just been developed.
