Cancer & Fertility Preservation

04/02/20 • 27 min

Everyone’s fertility journey is different. Dionne’s began when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her doctor told her that cancer treatment would drastically impact her fertility, so if she thought she might want biological children in the future, she’d need to undergo oocyte cryopreservation (egg freezing) immediately. In preparing for chemotherapy and the brutal battle with cancer, Dionne also now had to consider her fertility. In this episode, she shares how she managed it all.

Show notes

Dionne’s YouTube channel chronicles her fertility preservation journey during cancer treatment. Dionne’s oocyte cryopreservation process happened in tandem with the first steps of her battle with breast cancer.

Show notes

Previous Episode

Twiblings via Gestational Carrier

Having a child via gestational carrier, a process commonly referred to as surrogacy, can be complex for one pregnancy. But George and his husband were hoping to have two babies at the same time—“twiblings.” Between finding an egg donor, a reputable clinic, two gestational carriers, and managing everything there is to do when preparing for two new additions to a family, George and his husband had a lot on their hands. Here’s how they did it.

Next Episode

Fertility Language & Culture

If you wondered why we said “gestational carrier” rather than “surrogate” on this podcast, this episode is for you. While this show typically features personal stories from people who have gone through their own fertility journeys, today we have an interview with Carrot’s Riley Steinmetz and Dr. Sheryl Vanderpoel. Carrot has a global perspective on the language of fertility, and why finding the right words to talk about fertility care is so important.

Show notes

Carrot’s fertility language guide is a robust resource for learning how to communicate about fertility in an inclusive and accurate way.

The International Glossary on Infertility and Fertility Care is an additional resource Dr. Vanderpoel recommends for learning about fertility language.