​New ACS research studies impact of recent SCOTUS decision.

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) ruling in Dobbs vs. Jackson overruled Roe vs. Wade, returning an individual’s right to access abortion services to state law. New findings led by American Cancer Society researchers show more than 32,000 newly diagnosed adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients may lose or face compromised fertility preservation care each year due to legislation that has been enacted or is expected to be enacted in some states. 

Fertility preservation is an essential component of cancer care for patients diagnosed with cancer at reproductive age. The SCOTUS ruling could potentially interfere with fertility preservation of AYA cancer patients due to new restrictions on genetic testing, storage, and disposal of embryos, including those created in vitro. According to study authors, fertility preservation care will be needed for more than two-thirds of newly diagnosed AYA cancer patients. The research was published this week in the journal The Lancet Oncology.

“Accurate information about the adverse consequences of reproductive legislation on access to fertility preservation care for adolescent and young adult patients with cancer needs to be fully understood by policymakers,” said Dr. Xuesong Han, ACS scientific director, health services research and senior author of the study. “The data in this study show AYA cancer patients may be deprived of their ability to preserve their fertility before they start their cancer treatments due to new barriers to accessing these critical reproductive services.”  

From the recent national U.S. population-based cancer registry data, researchers identified individuals aged 15-44 years old newly diagnosed with cancer. Patients requiring fertility preservation as part of cancer care include diagnoses of any lymphoma, leukemia, bones/joints/soft tissue sarcoma, testicular cancer, female breast, ovary, uterine, or cervix cancer; or any regional/distant cancer as they commonly receive chemotherapy, radiation, or other gonadotoxic or sperm and egg destroying treatments. Patients needing fertility care from 22 states where abortion is banned/likely to be banned as of August 6, 2022, were compared with patients from 29 states where abortion remains legal. Other ACS authors include Dr. Robin Yabroff.

• Resources from the American Cancer Society concerning fertility preservation can be found here. 
• More information about the potential consequences of state legislation for cancer patients can be found here.