Men undergoing treatment (radiation, chemotherapy or surgery) for testicular cancer often causes permanent or temporary infertility. However, a recent study in the U.K. found that “many men do not know how cancer treatment can affect their fertility or the likelihood of fertility recovery over the long-term.”

Testicular cancer often strikes men at a young age, so sperm cryopreservation (or “sperm freezing”) prior to initiating life-saving cancer treatment enables men a chance at fathering biologically related children. Through cryopreservation, sperm can be stored for an unlimited amount of time without degrading the quality of the sperm. This makes sperm cryopreservation an excellent option for those who know they would like to leave their family planning options open for the future.

Please click here to learn more about fertility after cancer.

Before needing to have a second surgery for testicular cancer, Allen* decided to freeze his sperm in hopes of having a family in the future. Allen was discouraged after having been told that very few sperm would survive and that most did not have a tail, but kept hope that future technology would provide him the opportunity to at least have one viable sperm to fertilize an egg.

Eight years later, Allen and his wife were ready to have a child and they were determined to find the best fertility clinic in the U.S. to have the best chance of success. After hearing about CCRM through a work colleague, Allen knew CCRM was the right clinic for their family even though it meant many flights between his home in Michigan and CCRM’s clinic in Colorado.

When Allen was told by his physician at CCRM that he had many viable sperm, he was moved to tears. Allen and his wife transferred two embryos through in vitro fertilization and as a result, had their son. Two years later, they transferred another embryo and ended up with their beautiful daughter.

*Name has been changed for privacy reasons.