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Fertility Counseling & Gamete Cryopreservation Program

Infertility is a distressing side effect of many cancer treatments. Freezing gametes (sperm or eggs) prior to the initiation of cancer therapy gives patients diagnosed with cancer the potential to have a child in the future. Too often, this service is not considered until the patient is well into cancer treatment and by then, it may be too late.

Here at the U-M Cancer Center, we not only want to cure cancer, we also want to provide patients with the healthiest future possible. That's why we teamed with professionals from the the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART) laboratory to meet the unique reproductive needs of cancer patients.

The Fertility Counseling & Gamete Cryopreservation Program (FCGCP), provides counseling and education services, as well as semen collection and storage for male patients; and oocyte (egg) stimulation, harvesting and storage services for female patients. The FCGCP aims to address the information needs regarding procedural, custody, legal and financial issues, and will assist the patient through the cryopreservation process in an efficient manner allowing for minimal delays in cancer treatment.

The FCGCP provides patients:

• counseling to discuss cancer-related infertility process
  
• the expertise of the U-M Assisted Reproduction Technology (ART) laboratory
  
• physician specialists in reproductive endocrinology
  
• the assistance of the nurse counselor who will act as liaison between the ART laboratory and Cancer Center physicians ensuring timely processing of samples
  
• comprehensive educational materials for patients, partners and family members
  

Meet the Clinic Staff

note: the following links open onto the UMHS website

Dana A. Ohl, M.D., Co-Director, Center for Fertility and Sexuality

Senait Fisseha, M.D., J.D., Medical Director, Center for Reproductive Medicine

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University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center
1500 East Medical Center Drive
Ann Arbor, MI 48109

This site is part of the U-M Health System. The information presented is not a tool for self diagnosis or a substitute for professional care. © 2008 U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center