A narrative review on the research progress of gonadal function protection in children with cancer

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: The global incidence of malignant tumors in children (0–14 years) and adolescents (15–19 years) ranges between 95 per 1 million and 255 per 1 million, which seriously affects the survival of patients. In the past 30 years, with the application of comprehensive treatments (including surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and bone marrow transplantation), great progress has been made in the treatment of malignant tumors in children and adolescents. The 5-year survival rate now exceeds 80%, and most patients can smoothly enter adolescence or the reproductive period. However, due to the particular age of patients with malignant tumors in children and adolescents, treatment may cause abnormal growth of the patient’s height, bones, and some vital organs (such as the pituitary gland and reproductive organs). Treatment may also cause abnormal secretion of growth hormones, thyroid hormones, and sex hormones. These complications seriously affect the quality of life of tumor patients. In the past ten years, countries have established long-term follow-up specifications for children with tumors. These programs have found that, in adulthood, 67% to 75% of children who survived having tumors have at least one treatment-related complication. Among patients receiving chemotherapy, gonadal dysfunction is the most common related endocrine dysfunction. METHODS: This paper reviews the literature on fertility protection services for cancer patients in foreign countries was conducted to provide a reference for developing gonadal protection services for cancer patients and for establishing consensus or guidelines on gonadal protection in China. KEY CONTENT AND FINDINGS: In the treatment of childhood cancer, the assistance of reproductive technology can effectively reduce the occurrence of complications from treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, minimizing the effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy on the growth and endocrine of children and adolescents while treating tumors is a new challenge for oncologists.