Improved treatments have raised survival rates for cancer patients, but cancer treatments, like chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery, can affect a person’s fertility. This impact is not uniform.

A small window exists, before patients start cancer treatment, when they need to understand the impact on their future fertility. For this, patients need timely information about their fertility preservation options.

Some cancer survivors, however, aren’t given the chance to discuss their future fertility options. Patients may miss out on fertility preservation because they are not aware of their options. Health professionals may not be aware of these options either.

To raise awareness of this issue, Western and Central Melbourne Integrated Cancer Service (WCMICS), along with the Royal Women’s Hospital and Royal Children’s Hospital, is launching a national campaign about onco-fertility issues and treatments, called Fertility After Cancer. The Fertility After Cancer campaign centres on a suite of new patient education videos on onco-fertility treatments. These resources are very timely because they respond directly to the newly updated Australian guidelines on fertility preservation for patients with cancer.

Hear a national conversation about onco-fertility and learn about the options available to patients for fertility preservation, how to support newly diagnosed cancer patients through the onco-fertility process, and the resources available to help with this.

Presenters

Dr Violet Kieu
Fertility Specialist, Royal Women's Hospital, Melbourne IVF & The University of Melbourne

Dr Violet Kieu is a consultant Gynaecologist specialising in fertility, reproductive endocrinology, and fertility preservation. Violet graduated from Medicine, Surgery & Medical Science from the University of Melbourne in 2007 and was awarded the Vernon Collins Prize in Paediatrics. She holds a Diploma in Surgical Anatomy 2009, a Masters of Reproductive Medicine with Excellence 2019 from UNSW and is completing her Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility subspecialty certification. Violet’s research awards include the Australian Gynaecology Endoscopy Surgery (AGES) Platinum Laparoscopy Award 2018 and a presentation prize from the Australian and New Zealand Society for Paediatric Radiology (ANZSPR) 2012. As a Clinical Senior Lecturer in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Melbourne, Violet conducts both quantitative and qualitative research into the patient experience of IVF. 

Associate Professor Yasmin Jayasinghe
Director, Oncofertility Program, Royal Children’s Hospital

Associate Professor Yasmin Jayasinghe is a paediatric gynaecologist, Director of the Oncofertility Program at The Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne, and the Australian representative on the Practice Committee of the global Oncofertility Consortium.  She is founding Chair of the Australian New Zealand Consortium in Paediatric Oncofertility (ANZCO), and is Principal Investigator of the bi-national ANZCO clinical trials network.

She has been recognised as 2019 finalist in the Vic Health Awards for facilitating equitable access to oncofertility care, and in 2021 was a national finalist for the Australian Human Rights Medal for pioneering new models of care to  protect the reproductive rights of children.

Ms Kath Quade
Manager, Western and Central Melbourne Integrated Cancer Services

A senior health care leader and registered nurse; Kath has 18 years of combined clinical and operational and strategic management experience. She holds post-graduate qualifications, including a Master in Health Administration. 

In recent years, Kath has been the Manager of Western & Central Melbourne Integrated Cancer Service, part of Victoria’s only dedicated cancer improvement network.

Panelists 

Ms Laura Tucker

Diagnosed with brain cancer while 26 weeks pregnant, Laura brought her son Theo into the world and beat cancer over a 6-month period. Laura is in remission now and splits her time between fully enjoying every day of motherhood and raising public awareness about onco-fertility treatments.

Ms Ying Wong

Ying is a graduate lawyer at Corrs Chambers Westgarth. A cancer survivor with a commitment to helping others through their diagnosis and cancer journey, she is a youth cancer action advocate at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and a consumer advocate at the VCCC Alliance.