X-Message-Number: 23590
From: "Basie" <>
Subject:  Tissue that was frozen 
Date: Wed, 10 Mar 2004 20:13:21 -0500

 Tissue that was frozen

Embryo Obtained After Breast Cancer Patient's Ovarian Tissue Is Frozen,
Stored For Six Years, And Then Reimplanted
New York, NY (March 3, 2004) -- For the first time, physician-scientists at
the Center for Reproductive Medicine and Infertility (CRMI) of
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center have taken a
breast cancer patient's ovarian tissue that was frozen for six years,
reimplanted it under her abdominal skin, and obtained an embryo from eggs
collected from the tissue.

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Related section: Health & Medicine


The unique achievement raises the possibility that women or girls who are
about to undergo chemotherapy, radiation, or other ovary-damaging treatments
can have their ovaries removed, frozen, and possibly used to restore
fertility or reverse menopause at a later date. Some treatments used for
cancer and other health conditions can destroy any chance of future
pregnancy and create premature menopause in women.

The findings were fast-tracked for publication by The Lancet -- to be
published online on March 9 and in print on March 13. The research study was
led by Dr. Kutluk Oktay at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell's Center for
Reproductive Medicine and Infertility (CRMI).

"This is the first case in medical history where an embryo has been obtained
from frozen banked ovarian tissue after ovarian transplantation," said Dr.
Kutluk H. Oktay, Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Weill
Cornell Medical College and a specialist in Reproductive Endocrinology and
Infertility at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell's CRMI.

"This research represents a potentially significant reproductive advancement
in two respects: first, women can preserve their fertility by freezing their
ovarian tissue, and second, pregnancy may be possible even after the tissue
remains frozen for a long time," said Dr. Zev Rosenwaks, co-author of the
Lancet study and Director of the CRMI.

The patient was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 30 and had an ovary
removed and frozen. Five years later, after undergoing chemotherapy that
cured her cancer, she contacted Dr. Oktay. After undergoing extensive
counseling, 15 pieces of ovarian tissue were thawed and transplanted under
the skin in her abdomen. After three months, the tissue began to produce
hormones and eggs, and every month the eggs were collected to undergo in
vitro fertilization.

"In eight months, we collected about 20 eggs, and eight of those were good
enough to be fertilized. We finally got an embryo that made it to the
healthy-looking four-cell stage," said Dr. Oktay. "The embryo was
transferred to the patient's uterus although she didn't get pregnant. The
chances of pregnancy with a single embryo are limited, probably less then
10%, so we're going to keep trying."

Dr. Oktay said the procedure could be of interest to many types of patients,
both children and adults.

"In this country, there are potentially several hundred thousand women and
children who could benefit from this annually," he said. "We have patients
anywhere from 6-7 years old and up," said Dr. Oktay.

"You could do it for pediatric cancer patients, adults, and women undergoing
surgery for benign conditions in which you lose your ovaries," Dr. Oktay
added. "There are hematologic diseases in which you give patients drugs that
have these side effects; it's not only for cancer."

Some types of bone disease require radiation treatments to the pelvis, which
also damage fertility.

There's also the possibility that the procedure could be done electively.
"Can a woman preserve a piece of an ovary for future use against aging? This
is always discussed," Dr. Oktay said. "You might actually bank ovarian
tissue -- potentially as long as you want -- and possibly preserve
fertility. But this needs to be further studied."

The procedure is relatively noninvasive, said Dr. Oktay. "The insertion
under the skin is done with local anesthesia, as is the egg collection," he
said. "You can carry on a conversation with the patient while it's going
on."

At this point, fewer than a dozen women worldwide have had ovarian tissue
reimplanted in their body after fertility-damaging treatments, Dr. Oktay
said.

"We don't know how long these grafts will last; they tend not to last as
long as the typical ovary inside the body," he said.

Dr. Oktay is an internationally recognized pioneer in the field of ovarian
cryopreservation. In his first study published in the New England Journal of
Medicine, he described the first pelvic ovarian transplantation with
cryopreserved tissue. He published another study in 2001, reporting the
first transplantation of ovarian tissue under the skin of the arm of two
patients. In that case, the tissue produced eggs but no embryos.

Besides Dr. Oktay and Dr. Rosenwaks, additional co-authors include Dr. Erkan
Buyuk, Dr. Lucinda Veeck, Nikica Zaninovic, Dr. Kangpu Xu, Dr. Takumi
Takeuchi, and Dr. Michael Opsahl.

Editor's Note: The original news release can be found here.

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