Desire for pregnancy and fertility preservation in young patients with breast cancer

Data on the desire for pregnancy and the status of fertility preservation (FP) in patients with breast cancer remain unclear. This study aimed to determine the status of patients with breast cancer who desired pregnancy and FP implementation before systemic therapy.

This retrospective study surveyed the institutional clinical databases and electronic medical records of patients aged < 43 years with stages 0–III primary breast cancer during surgery and treated between April 2020 and March 2021. All patients were enquired about their desire for pregnancy in a questionnaire by “present,” “absent,” and “unsure” at their first visit. The correlation between the desire for pregnancy, implementation of FP, and clinicopathological factors was investigated.

Among 1005 patients who underwent surgery for primary breast cancer, 146 were included in the analysis. Of them, 34 (23.3%) patients had a desire for pregnancy, and 45 (30.8%) chose “unsure.” Factors associated with the desire for pregnancy were younger age during surgery (p < 0.0022), unmarried status (p < 0.001), nulliparity (p < 0.001), early-stage disease (p = 0.0016), and estrogen receptor positivity (p = 0.008). Among 115 patients who underwent systemic therapy, 13 (11.3%) underwent FP before systemic therapy. Patients who were nulliparous frequently pursued FP (p = 0.0195). The proportion of FP implementation was low in patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy (p = 0.0863).

Our study suggests that unmarried, nulliparous, and younger patients were more interested in pregnancy, and nulliparous patients frequently pursued FP.