Vienna, Austria: Young women undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer may be more likely to remain fertile if they also receive hormonal treatment, according to new research presented to the 2015 European Cancer Congress [1] and published simultaneously in Annals of Oncology [2]. Researchers told the Congress that the addition of treatment with a so-called luteinising […]
Category: Fertility
First live birth after transplantation of ovarian tissue removed and frozen during childhood
A young woman has become the first in the world to give birth to a healthy child after doctors restored her fertility by transplanting ovarian tissue that had been removed and frozen while she was a child. A report of the case is published in Human Reproduction [1], one of the world’s leading reproductive medicine […]
First national study of non-invasive prenatal testing shows it works and is preferred by high-risk women
Glasgow, United Kingdom: Results from a national study of non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) in women at high risk of having a baby with Down’s syndrome have been presented at the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics. The Netherlands is the first country in the world to include NIPT in a government supported, […]
Novel genetic mutations may arise during early embryonic development rather than being acquired from the parents’ germline
Glasgow, United Kingdom: New, sophisticated gene sequencing techniques are leading to an increasing understanding of the causes of genetic disease, and can help parents with affected children make informed reproductive choices, according to research presented at the annual conference of the European Society of Human Genetics. Until now, de novo genetic mutations, alterations in a […]
Non-invasive prenatal foetal testing can detect early stage cancer in mothers
Glasgow, United Kingdom: Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) for chromosomal foetal disorders is used increasingly to test for conditions such as Down’s syndrome. NIPT examines DNA from the foetus in the mother’s blood, and therefore does not carry the risk of miscarriage involved in invasive testing methods. Now, for the first time, researchers have found another […]
Non-invasive prenatal testing: effective, safe, preferred by parents, and applicable in a range of disorders
Glasgow, United Kingdom: Non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) for Down’s syndrome is feasible, acceptable to parents, and could be introduced into the National Health Service (NHS), UK researchers say. The results of a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) study carried out by the first NHS laboratory to provide NIPT testing were reported to the annual […]
Pesticides in fruit and vegetables linked to semen quality
The first study to investigate the relationship between eating fruit and vegetables containing pesticide residues and the quality of men’s semen has shown a link with lower sperm counts and percentages of normally-formed sperm. The study, which is published online in Human Reproduction [1], one of the world’s leading reproductive medicine journals, shows that men […]
Fifteen million unwanted pregnancies a year caused by underuse of modern contraception
Fifteen million out of 16.7 million unwanted pregnancies a year could be avoided in 35 low- and middle-income countries if women had the opportunity to use modern methods of contraception, according to a study that applies to about one-third of the world’s population. The authors of the study point out that women who become pregnant […]
Sugary drinks linked to earlier onset of menstrual periods
Girls who frequently consume sugary drinks tend to start their menstrual periods earlier than girls who do not, according to new research published online in Human Reproduction [1], one of the world’s leading reproductive medicine journals. In the first study to look at the relation between sugar-sweetened drinks and the age at which girls have […]
Largest study of babies born after infertility treatment shows significant improvements in health over past 20 years
The last two decades has seen a steady improvement in the health outcomes of children born after assisted reproduction (ART), with fewer babies being born preterm, with low birth weight, stillborn or dying within the first year of life. These findings come from the largest study to date to investigate the health of ART babies […]