Fertility preservation in young female cancer patients: A study to assess knowledge, attitudes and intentions to use fertility preservation

BACKGROUND: Advances in cancer therapy have resulted in an increased number of long term cancer survivors. The present study concerns fertility preservation (FP) for women who are experiencing or have experienced cancers prior to or during their reproductive lifespan. The objectives are to (1) assess attitudes and knowledge about FP techniques, (2) evaluate anxiety and decisional conflicts associated with fertility issues and consideration of FP techniques and (3) assess the helpfulness of various sources of support. METHOD: The study is part of a larger Swiss project comprising of two parts, each with a different methodological approach: On the one hand focus groups are accomplished and on the other hand an online survey is conducted. Only the latter will be presented: The online-survey is based on a pilot-study conducted in the UK with a specifically developed questionnaire. It assesses participant's knowledge about FP techniques, sources of knowledge, perceived risks/benefits and willingness to use FP techniques, as well as anxiety and decisional conflicts and is accessible via cancer specific websites. Quantitative analyses are computed using SPSS 17. RESULTS: Preliminary results from the pilot-study show that participants (n580) had good knowledge of embryo and egg freezing, but little knowledge of more advanced techniques and low confidence levels about their knowledge about FP techniques. Strength of positive attitudes about FP techniques was significantly greater than negative attitudes (p<.001). However, willingness to take any risks was low. Furthermore, the availability of information was perceived as being difficult). Most often sources of support were partner, family and physician. The results from the still ongoing online-survey of the Swiss study will be additionally presented at the congress and intercultural differences will be discussed. CONCLUSIONS: The so far achieved data reveal that knowledge about FP was limited and level of confidence about this knowledge was low. Besides partner and family support, the physician plays an important role as source of information and support. To reduce decisional conflict in this ethically complex context the development of decision and counselling aids adapted for this context would be crucial. RESEARCH IMPLICATIONS: Considering the limited knowledge on these psychological aspects in the relatively new topic of cancer and FP, our aim is to gain a deeper insight into this research field. Within the scope of our study, we intend to use the gained information to integrate these elements into a decision-aid tool, which in turn has to be evaluated in a future study. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: Information transfer is challenging in the given situation, in which various meaningful issues have to be addressed in the short time period between diagnosis and commencement of treatment. With regard to adequate support in decision-making, it is of utmost importance to be aware of the patients' conflicts and to know about individuals at risk for difficulties in decision-making. Therefore a structured guidance through the decision-making process is greatly in demand.