2023-10-21 18:00:01
On average, one in eight women will experience breast cancer in their lifetime. A disease that is increasingly common among young people. To preserve their fertility, many choose to freeze their eggs. This is the case of Léa Fortin, 28 years old, whom we met.
At just 28 years old, Léa Fortin is in full remission. The young woman, who lives in Mesnil-Simon in Calvados, has just gone through two years of complicated breast cancer: “I had discharge overnight, so I quickly went to see my GP who referred me to the hospital where I had numerous tests and biopsies.”
The verdict falls: “Both my breasts were affected. It was a real blow to the head that I took. I was with my mother that day, fortunately”. Léa will have surgery in October 2021: “Everything was removed from me and everything rebuilt. But I encountered a problem with one of the prostheses, I had an infection. I had to wait until February 2022 to start the rays and then the hormone therapy which I am still on today ‘today’.
Hormone therapy, a treatment that the young woman must take for another three and a half years to avoid a relapse. Given her young age and to protect herself from cancer-related infertility, she decided to freeze her eggs: “During a consultation I was told regarding the collection and preservation of my eggs. I immediately accepted. I was offered the possibility of this maternity project following cancer if I wish.” She adds, her voice filled with emotion:
“I start from the principle that cancer is a phase of my life. There will be an following. And it will be my choice to have a child or not and not that of the illness.”
Léa Fortin
Patient in remission
Like her, many young women suffering from cancer choose egg retrieval. This is particularly the case at the Caen-Normandie University Hospital, in Calvados, considered one of the two expert centers in the region with that of Rouen, in Seine-Maritime.
Egg retrieval, also called follicular retrieval, is a small procedure carried out on an outpatient basis. Under local anesthesia, the mature oocytes in the patient’s ovaries are collected under ultrasound control. • © Thomas Tavitian
Egg retrieval, also called follicular retrieval, is a small procedure carried out on an outpatient basis. Under local anesthesia, the mature oocytes in the patient’s ovaries are collected under ultrasound control.
The gray dot in the center is an oocyte that can be seen under a microscope. • © Thomas Tavitian
The cells are then quickly transported to a laboratory where they are analyzed by technicians, before vitrifying them by immersing them in nitrogen. “The oocytes are stored in storage tanks at -175 degrees” explains Antoine Clergeau, head of the reproductive biology department at Caen-Normandy University Hospital. “Each tube concerns a patient. We have records that show where the eggs are kept.” The latter specifies that:
“There is no shelf life. The only limit is the legislation which authorizes the use of oocytes up to the age of 45 for women.”
Antoine Clergeau
Head of the reproductive biology department at Caen-Normandy University Hospital
The eggs are analyzed in a laboratory by technicians. • © Thomas Tavitian
Laboratory technicians vitrify the eggs by immersing them in nitrogen. They are then frozen in storage tanks at -175 degrees. • © Thomas Tavitian
At the Caen university hospital, 650 punctures take place each year, around fifty of which are for breast cancer: “Breast cancer is unfortunately more and more common, it is the first cancer in women, one in eight is currently affected” explains Doctor Christine Denoual Ziad, head of the gynecology-obstetrics department at Caen-Normandy University Hospital.
“The puncture allows fertility preservation for these patients who cannot decide to have a pregnancy with the disease present in their lives. We know that time matters a lot for the biological clock in women.”
Dr Christine Denoual Ziad
Head of the gynecology-obstetrics department at Caen-Normandy University Hospital
Preserving oocytes is a way for specialists to allow patients to return to a normal life as a woman following their cancer.
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