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If you’re a woman about to start cancer treatment, you may have concerns about how any treatment might affect your fertility, both now and in the future.

The information on this page will help you to find out more about women, fertility and cancer, including ways of preserving fertility.

What is fertility in women

Fertility for a woman means being able to get pregnant and have a baby. It's a process that can happen naturally when a woman releases an egg and it is fertilised by male sperm. 

Women are generally fertile once their periods start, and fertility lessens gradually as they get older. Women become naturally infertile once they have been through the menopause, which is when their periods permanently stop.

Fertility and the ability to get pregnant and have a baby is a complex process. It can be hampered by many factors, as fertility requires reproductive organs and a finely tuned hormone production system. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ and treatments can have a temporary or permanent effect on fertility.

Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ and women’s fertility

There are a range of cancer treatments that can affect a woman’s fertility. Your specialist doctors and healthcare team should explore the potential impact of treatment on your fertility before you start treatment. This is so that measures can be taken to preserve your fertility where possible.

Some cancer treatments stop periods temporarily, however, fertility may not return for some women, particularly if nearing menopause. ²Ñ²¹²µ²µ¾±±ð’s can support you with issues to do with early menopause.

It is advisable to take contraceptive precautions whilst on treatment, as cancer treatments can affect growing embryos, especially during early pregnancy. Your doctor will be able to tell you which contraceptive method is most suitable for you alongside your treatment.

Let your healthcare team know if you might be planning another child after your treatment finishes. Sometimes, assumptions can be made that if you already have a child, fertility may not be a high priority. However, for you, it may be an important consideration.

Preserving your fertility

There are ways to help preserve fertility in women. It may be by freezing eggs or embryos.

Freezing eggs or embryos

To preserve eggs, you can be given medication to stimulate your ovaries to produce more eggs, which can then be collected and frozen. 

Alternatively, eggs can be fertilised using sperm. Any eggs that produce embryos can then be frozen.

Storing eggs and embryos

The NHS will store eggs and embryos for ten years. If being stored longer, this may need to be paid for. These processes take time, and the timing to start treatment should be taken into consideration by you and your team.

Other ways to preserve fertility

Newer techniques involving freezing sections of the ovary are sometimes possible but not always appropriate or readily available. Your specialist team will check if these procedures are possible in your case. Fertility using these methods is a way of helping you have a baby after cancer, but it is not always successful.

If having radiotherapy treatment, it is sometimes possible to temporarily move the ovaries out of the treatment area. The procedure is called an ovarian transposition and it is carried out through keyhole surgery. Your specialist team can determine if this is possible for you.

Treatments that can affect fertility 

There are a number of cancer treatments that can affect a woman’s fertility:

• surgery - you may need surgery that affects your fertility. This could include operations involving the pelvis or the reproductive system (uterus, cervix, vagina, fallopian tubes or ovaries). Specialist doctors will try to preserve your fertility if possible.
• chemotherapy - many chemotherapy treatments can affect fertility, either temporarily or permanently. This can depend on how old you are, the type of chemotherapy you have and the dose strength. Contraception is advisable during your chemotherapy treatment, even if your periods have temporarily stopped.
• radiotherapy - pelvic radiotherapy can affect your fertility as it may impact on your womb, fallopian tubes or ovaries. Permanent infertility risk increases as you get older and also depends on the dosage of radiotherapy you have. Radiotherapy can also be used to treat areas in the brain, which may impact on the pituitary gland, affecting hormone production and fertility.
• targeted/immuno/biological therapies - these treatments are relatively new, so there isn’t a great deal of information on how they affect fertility. Some targeted therapies, however, have been found to cause fertility issues. Your specialists will explain which therapy drugs may be used and how they impact fertility.
• bone marrow and stem cell transplants - these treatments usually stop any release of further eggs for fertilisation. It’s therefore important to discuss fertility before starting this form of treatment.
• hormone therapies - drugs such as Tamoxifen and Zoladex, for example, can affect fertility. They may be used to treat breast cancer and other hormone-dependant cancers. Any fertility issues this may cause is often temporary.

Fertility after cancer treatment

After cancer treatment, you may start thinking about having a family. It can take time to reach this decision.

Your specialist may recommend that you wait a period of time before trying to get pregnant so that your body is fully recovered. You may need additional help and support to get pregnant after cancer. You can ask your specialist to refer you to a fertility clinic.

Some people find having sex difficult after having cancer treatment, either for physical reasons like pain and tiredness, or for emotional reasons. You can find out more in our section on sex, intimacy and cancer.

You may be concerned that your cancer has a genetic cause, and this can sometimes be a consideration before getting pregnant after cancer. Talk through your worries with your specialist team. They can refer you for genetic counselling if you have specific risk factors. Find out more about cancer in families.

When conceiving naturally becomes challenging

Sometimes, having your own biological child becomes more challenging after having cancer. Some people consider adoption or having a child by surrogacy (another woman bearing a child for them).

If having a child is not possible, it's natural to feel a range of emotions like sadness, grief and loss. These feelings can take time to come to terms with and be difficult to process. There are organisations which can help address these natural feelings, for example, .

You can also ask for counselling, which helps resolve and address the range of emotions you’re experiencing.

Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, children’s fertility and cancer

Some cancer treatments can cause infertility in children and teenagers as a late effect. It is something your child’s consultant should discuss with you and your child (if they are at age to understand). 

There are a number of preserving fertility measures that can be taken. It is a specialised area, and individual procedures are changing as new ways of preserving fertility are found. You can find out more in the links at the bottom of the page, or by checking with your child’s specialist team.

How ²Ñ²¹²µ²µ¾±±ð’s can help

Fertility concerns are understandable, particularly if you've recently had a cancer diagnosis or are about to start treatment.

You may need clarity on some of the options discussed, or you may simply need to offload the feelings you’re experiencing. You and your partner may find your relationship is being affected by all the stresses cancer brings. 

• ²Ñ²¹²µ²µ¾±±ð’s can provide support and information, as well as ways to relieve stress and strategies to cope. You can attend as a couple or as individuals.
• You can also spend time talking with others, or in a one-to-one session with one of our cancer support specialists or psychologists.
• Just come in to your nearest ²Ñ²¹²µ²µ¾±±ð’s centre to find out more. You can also look through the resources linked to on this page for more information.

Last review: May 2026 | Next review: May 2029