Personal Fundraiser

In any given week, University Reproductive Care (URC), the clinical arm of the Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Division of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at UWMC, cares for 2-5 post-pubertal girls and reproductive-aged women suddenly facing a new cancer diagnosis or in survivorship from cancer treatment and looking for assistance in preserving their fertility through Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) like in vitro fertilization (IVF). This patient volume continues to increase steadily as FHCC and Seattle Children’s Hospital expand their services and the URC physician and clinical staff numbers grow. The most common cancer diagnoses include breast cancer and hematologic cancers such as lymphoma, but any patient facing chemotherapy toxic to the ovaries, radiation treatment of the pelvis or brain, surgical treatment affecting the pituitary gland, ovaries or uterus, endocrine therapy, or any cancer treatment requiring a significant delay in childbearing can result in infertility. A 2018 systematic review on fertility-related distress in cancer patients showed, “the reproductive concern of unfulfilled desire to have a child in female patients was linked to significantly more trauma, depression, poorer mental health, higher reproductive concerns, and lower sexual satisfaction, compared with those without interrupted childbearing” (Logan et al, Psycho-Oncology 2018). URC can help mitigate this distress with egg, embryo, or ovarian tissue freezing through its ART/IVF program.

Unfortunately, insurance coverage for fertility preservation is too often lacking, especially for historically underserved populations in Black, Latinx, and Indigenous communities. In fact, the majority of patients we see have no coverage for fertility preservation in their policies. URC provides discounts for these cancer patients and works with non-profit organizations to defray the costs of medications. Nonetheless, one cycle of fertility preservation treatment can cost a patient ~$10,000 out of pocket, which is an insurmountable barrier for many patients also facing expensive cancer care. To provide this care that is so important to adolescent and young adult cancer patients, URC needs funding to help us treat these underinsured patients. Gifts totalling $500,000 would allow 50 more patients per year to preserve their fertility in the face of toxic cancer treatment.