Live birth after autograft of ovarian tissue cryopreserved during childhood: Figure 1

TLDR

Ovarian insufficiency occurs in over 80 % of children and adolescents after myeloablative conditioning, and while cryopreservation of ovarian tissue is offered to preserve fertility, its success has only been demonstrated in adults with more than 35 live births reported. We report the first live birth following autograft of cryopreserved ovarian tissue harvested before menarche in a woman with primary ovarian failure after myeloablative conditioning for sickle‑cell anemia, demonstrating the feasibility of fertility restoration in childhood.

Abstract

Ovarian insufficiency is a major long-term adverse event, following the administration of a myeloablative conditioning regimen, and occurring in >80% of children and adolescents receiving such treatment for malignant or non-malignant disease. Cryopreservation of ovarian tissue is currently offered to preserve the fertility of these young patients. At least 35 live births have been reported after transplantation of cryopreserved ovarian tissue in adult patients, but the procedure remains unproven for ovarian tissue harvested at a prepubertal or pubertal age. We report here the first live birth after autograft of cryopreserved ovarian tissue in a woman with primary ovarian failure after a myeloablative conditioning regimen as part of a hematopoietic stem cell transplantation performed for homozygous sickle-cell anemia at age 14 years. This first report of successful fertility restoration after the graft of ovarian tissue cryopreserved before menarche offers reassuring evidence for the feasibility of the procedure when performed during childhood.