If you need a medical treatment that will cause infertility — like chemotherapy — you may be a good candidate for ovarian tissue transplantation.
Surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy for cancer can damage reproductive tissue and cause infertility in women. With ovarian tissue transplantation, you may be able to have necessary medical treatment and still get pregnant later.
Doctors remove healthy ovarian tissue before your cancer treatment and freeze it. Later, they thaw the tissue and implant it in your body.
Here’s what you need to know about UPMC transplantation services.
Doctors define transplantation as taking an organ or tissue and putting it in another part of the body, or someone else’s body.
Reproductive transplantation usually refers to ovarian tissue transplant. Transplants involving other reproductive organs, such as the uterus, are still experimental.
Doctors may recommend ovarian tissue transplant to preserve facility for:
Ovarian tissue transplant is also called ovarian tissue freezing or cryopreservation.
Ovarian tissue freezing is a relatively new treatment for infertility. The first live births from ovarian tissue transplantation were in 2004 in Belgium. It was still considered an experimental procedure until 2020.
Ovarian tissue transplantation involves freezing and storing tissue from the outer portion of the ovary (the cortex) before your cancer treatment. This tissue contains the primordial follicles, which each hold a single immature egg.
In the procedure, doctors remove all or part of the ovary. They then cut the cortex into thin strips and freeze it. Later, doctors thaw the tissue and return it to your body.
Once the thawed tissue is back in your body, it should start making hormones and releasing eggs. Your ovaries produce important hormones like estrogen and progesterone. So besides boosting your chances of getting pregnant, ovarian tissue transplantation can help restore your natural hormone production.
You can then try to become pregnant naturally or through in vitro fertilization (IVF).
Doctors are still experimenting with transplanting the uterus and other reproductive organs. Only a few dozen women throughout the world have given birth through a transplanted uterus.
Doctors are still developing technology that would allow a uterus transplant to a man. As of now, all uterine transplants have taken place in women.
We use transplantation of ovarian tissue when someone wants to preserve their fertility. Doctors often recommend ovarian tissue freezing when medical treatments like chemotherapy need to happen quickly.
Doctors may recommend ovarian tissue transplantation if you:
At UPMC, we offer ovarian tissue transplantation.
It’s important to have all the facts before moving forward with ovarian tissue transplantation. At UPMC, we provide individualized testing and a plan of care that can include:
During any ovarian tissue procedures, we will consult with the doctors providing treatment for your main condition. We provide coordinated care throughout your fertility journey.
Our transplantation services include ovarian tissue freezing. Our doctors freeze the outer shell of the ovary, which contains all of the immature eggs.
You'll be asleep under anesthesia when the doctor makes a small cut in your abdomen. They'll insert a narrow tube (laparoscope) to remove tissue from one ovary, or one whole ovary. They'll divide this tissue into thin strips and flash-freeze it, then place it in a special storage facility where it will be carefully monitored.
Ovarian tissue may stay stored for years.
Once you've completed medical treatment, doctors will thaw the tissue and return it to your body, placing it close to the remaining ovarian tissue. After a few months, the ovarian tissue should start making hormones and releasing eggs.
At that point, you can start trying to get pregnant. Pregnancy can occur naturally or you can use IVF. A UPMC fertility specialist will help guide you through the process.
UPMC is a leader in cutting-edge research and treatments, and we're continually developing state-of-the-art fertility-preserving technologies. We're one of the few medical centers in the U.S. to offer ovarian tissue transplant to restore hormone and reproductive function.
At UPMC, we take a team approach to your fertility and overall health. Our fertility specialists will consult with oncologists and other doctors when we undertake your treatment.
We also want you to be clear about your treatment and any potential side effects. Our goal is to educate you about the reproductive consequences of any disease and its treatments.
Last reviewed by a UPMC medical professional on 2024-09-05.
