Abstract 235P
Background
The time to resumption of menses (ROM) after long-term treatment for breast cancer is rarely known. Additionally, fertility perception is an important issue to measured quality of life in breast cancer young (BCY) patients. Herein, we describe the incidence of ROM and fertility perception in a developing country.
Methods
We studied medical records from pre-menopausal with breast cancer with or without hormone receptors (HR) diagnosed at the Instituto Nacional de Enfermedades Neoplásicas (INEN) in Lima, Peru from 2010 to 2012. ROM was defined as at least three consecutive menstrual cycles. A 3-question survey about desire to have children and perception about fertility treatment were conducted. Patients were classified according to HR status: in HR-negative ROM was measured at the end of chemotherapy treatment, and for HR-positive patients ROM was evaluated after chemo followed by tamoxifen for 24 months.
Results
From 677 patients, 10.7% (n=73) agreed to complete the survey. Median age was 41 years old (25-45), 15% (n=11) were stage I; 52% (n=38) stage II and 33% (n=24) stage III. HR (+) /HER2 (-) was the most frequent subtype with 59.1% (n=43). Approximately 30% patients (n=25) used chemical blockade (LHRH agonists) and 84% of those patients had undergone oophorectomy. With a median follow-up of 10 years, 24.3% (n=18) had ROM. The median age was 39 years (26-45) and the mean time of ROM was 3.78 months (1-6). In patients ≤ 39 years, 30% (n=9) had ROM and for the patients > 39 years 20% (n=9) had ROM. Only 1 patient was pregnant. The most frequent cause of avoiding birth desire was lack of information (90%). The perception of fertility and access to fertility preservation methods was evaluated in a survey; 19% (n=14) still desired pregnancy and 4% (n=3) thought about undergoing a fertility treatment.
Conclusions
A quarter of the patients with breast cancer have ROM; however, it was higher in younger patients. Despite of the pregnancy desire, the lack of information and access to fertilization techniques make it difficult. These results give us the opportunity to improve multidisciplinary management and include fertility preservation in the discussion.
Legal entity responsible for the study
The authors.
Funding
Has not received any funding.
Disclosure
All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.