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- Ståhl, Olof, et al.
(author)
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Sperm DNA integrity in cancer patients : the effect of disease and treatment
- 2009
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In: International Journal of Andrology. - : Wiley. - 1365-2605 .- 0105-6263. ; 32:6, s. 695-703
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- As oncological treatment might impair the patients' fertility, male cancer patients are offered to cryopreserve semen prior to treatment. Impaired sperm DNA quality is associated with reduced fertility, and in case of assisted reproduction, sperm DNA integrity may have an impact on choice of method. Therefore, we have assessed sperm DNA integrity in cancer patients, comparing pre- and post-treatment quality. Sperm DNA integrity was investigated in cryopreserved semen from 121 cancer patients, the predominating diagnoses were germ cell cancer (GCC) and Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL). Post-treatment samples, with a median follow-up of 3 years, were analysed for 58 of the men, allowing a pre- and post-treatment analysis on an individual basis. Sperm DNA integrity was assessed using the Sperm Chromatin Structure Assay and expressed here as the DNA Fragmentation Index (DFI%). One hundred and thirty-seven fertile men served as controls. Before treatment, GCC (n = 84) and HL (n = 18) patients had higher DFI% than controls (n = 143) with a mean difference of 7.7 (95% CI 3.2-8.8) and 7.0 (95% CI 2-12), respectively. The same trend was observed for other cancer diagnoses, but without reaching statistical significance (mean difference 3.6, 95% CI -1.2 to 8.4). No increase was seen in DFI% comparing pre- and post-treatment semen, regardless of treatment modality. A moderate elevation of DFI% was observed in cryopreserved semen from cancer patients. Oncological treatment, generally, did not induce any increase in DFI. These findings should be considered when discussing the utilization of pre-treatment cryopreserved semen vs. post-treatment fresh sperm in cancer patients undergoing assisted reproduction.
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- Ståhl, Olof, et al.
(author)
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Sperm DNA integrity in testicular cancer patients.
- 2006
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In: Human Reproduction. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0268-1161 .- 1460-2350. ; 21, s. 3199-3205
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: We evaluated the impact of testicular germ cell cancer (TGCC), its treatment and length of follow-up on sperm DNA integrity. METHODS: In 96 TGCC patients, semen was collected at specific intervals until 5 years after treatment. Sperm DNA integrity was assessed by the sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA, n = 193) and by the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick-end labelling (TUNEL, n = 159) assay. Results were expressed as DNA fragmentation index (DFI). Controls comprised of 278 military conscripts. RESULTS: Post-surgery testicular cancer (TC) patients did not differ from controls. Compared with pretreatment values, radiotherapy induced a transient increase in SCSA(DFI) (medians: 12 versus 19%; P = 0.03), normalizing after 3-5 years. One year or more after therapy, 5/13 (38%) of normozoospermic, irradiated patients had SCSA(DFI) > 27% compared with 7% of normozoospermic controls (P = 0.002). More than two cycles of chemotherapy decreased DFI 3-5 years post-therapy (median SCSA(DFI): 12 versus 9.1%, P = 0.02; median TUNELDFI: 11 versus 7.5%, P = 0.03). CONCLUSION: Irradiation increases sperm DNA damage 1-2 years after treatment, and 38% of irradiated patients with normozoospermia had high (> 27%) DNA damage, which may affect the sperm-fertilizing ability. TC per se is not associated with an increase of DFI, and DFI is reduced by three or more cycles of chemotherapy.
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