Female fertility preservation: why it does not always mean preservation of fertility

The risk of cancer-related infertility is high for some diseases, but still unclear for others. Due to numerous confounding factors, it is difficult to clarify the impact of cancer itself on female fertility. Oocyte and ovarian tissue cryopreservation offer many cancer patients an opportunity to achieve genetic parenthood, but the real efficacy of the method in terms of live births is still unknown. Since not all women with cancer are at risk of infertility, a customized approach, taking into account the type of disease and therapy, is required in order to optimize female fertility preservation method choice, efficacy and cost-effectiveness. This mini-review focuses on the efficacy of female fertility preservation by oocyte and ovarian tissue cryopreservation, in order to provide some useful tips for oncofertility counseling. KEY WORDS: Female fertility, fertility preservation, vitrification, oocytes, male breast cancer, fertility preservation efficacy, ovarian tissue.