Sperm Banking?

Irishgypsie
Irishgypsie Member Posts: 333
edited March 2014 in Head and Neck Cancer #1
My Doctors said that since the treatments are being directed towards the neck the sperm banking isn't; necessary but should avoid getting someone pregnant during and after six months of tx. Has anyone had these same concerns? Anyone have kids after being tx for cancer! Since I'm in the military I can get 1 year storage for free and get 2nd deposit for free. Think I should do this to be safe??

Charles

Comments

  • ratface
    ratface Member Posts: 1,337 Member
    #2
    You've got enough crap comming your way
    It isn't necessary and your adding more stress and appointments and complicating your life at a point where you are going to feel like your living in a whirlwind. And, from your other post your going through this alone. If being in the military had not brought this to the forefront before let it go for now. Ask to see a demo of the radiation machine and the radiation plan and your mind will be at ease. I can't think of a better support structure other than family than being active military. Apprciate the service.
  • Irishgypsie
    Irishgypsie Member Posts: 333
    #3
    ratface said:

    You've got enough crap comming your way
    It isn't necessary and your adding more stress and appointments and complicating your life at a point where you are going to feel like your living in a whirlwind. And, from your other post your going through this alone. If being in the military had not brought this to the forefront before let it go for now. Ask to see a demo of the radiation machine and the radiation plan and your mind will be at ease. I can't think of a better support structure other than family than being active military. Apprciate the service.

    Special Assignment!
    I'm a active duty U.S. Public Health Officer. Google USPHS.GOV. I was in The Air Force twelve years then switched over to the U.S. Public Health service. It's great all the same benefits as active duty Armed Forces branches; but no war zone stuff. Only humanitarian stuff. Having said that I could go to to a big base and be treated at a Military Training Facility MTF. But since I'm Tricare remote I have the option of using civilian doctors. So I'm gonna take advantage of it; they don't do too much cancer stuff for active duty people! I hear what your saying though; but I think I'm gonna store a few specimens just in case!! Thanks!

    Charles
  • Scambuster
    Scambuster Member Posts: 973
    #4
    Irishgypsie said:

    Special Assignment!
    I'm a active duty U.S. Public Health Officer. Google USPHS.GOV. I was in The Air Force twelve years then switched over to the U.S. Public Health service. It's great all the same benefits as active duty Armed Forces branches; but no war zone stuff. Only humanitarian stuff. Having said that I could go to to a big base and be treated at a Military Training Facility MTF. But since I'm Tricare remote I have the option of using civilian doctors. So I'm gonna take advantage of it; they don't do too much cancer stuff for active duty people! I hear what your saying though; but I think I'm gonna store a few specimens just in case!! Thanks!

    Charles

    Bank It !
    Charles,

    I think it is not a bad idea as a just in case measure. My wife gave birth to our little guy Jake the day i was released from surgery so I just jumped hospitals. I know the feeling you mentioned earlier about having a family etc as I now have 2 little kids under three. (I was a late starter ..now 47). I thought I wouldn't be around to see them grow up. You being worried about all these things is normal. It easy for us who have been through and made it in OK shape to look back and say "Hey Don't worry, you will be fine" but you certainly need to focus on the recovery rather than the demise as all the numbers are well in your favor. You will be fine !! You are maybe going to have a rough old time for 2 to 6 months depending, but you are in good shape and have similar Dx to many of us here, and we got through.

    On another note, I am a user of Natural therapists and saw a good Naturopath soon after I was diagnosed. She gave me some stuff to help handle the emotional stuff and I was like a rock all the way through .... till treatment finished, then I went to pieces. I went into a pretty bad depression and was very very sick with all the usual stuff, vomiting, weight loss, PEG, pain, couldn't, no taste, mucus and the feeling I wasn't getting any better.

    I was taken back into hospital in bad shape about 7 days after being released after treatment. they changed my meds around and that really helped me start to turn the corner. Message here is seek advice AND help if you need it from your doctors or other good practitioners. Just make sure you let them know how you feel. If you need to talk to a pro - TELL them that's what you want. They brought in a Shrink to see me (me who would never need a shrink..) and he casually asked me a bunch of questions and then gave me some happy pills and different pain pills and i actually slept for the first time in months and all calmed down and I started to come good. Since then I see him every so often, he weighs me, asks how long I sleep each night, and reduces the meds so i am now almost off all. Anyway just so you know.

    Cheers
    Scambuster
  • wisemommaerts
    wisemommaerts Member Posts: 1
    #5
    Scambuster said:

    Bank It !
    Charles,

    I think it is not a bad idea as a just in case measure. My wife gave birth to our little guy Jake the day i was released from surgery so I just jumped hospitals. I know the feeling you mentioned earlier about having a family etc as I now have 2 little kids under three. (I was a late starter ..now 47). I thought I wouldn't be around to see them grow up. You being worried about all these things is normal. It easy for us who have been through and made it in OK shape to look back and say "Hey Don't worry, you will be fine" but you certainly need to focus on the recovery rather than the demise as all the numbers are well in your favor. You will be fine !! You are maybe going to have a rough old time for 2 to 6 months depending, but you are in good shape and have similar Dx to many of us here, and we got through.

    On another note, I am a user of Natural therapists and saw a good Naturopath soon after I was diagnosed. She gave me some stuff to help handle the emotional stuff and I was like a rock all the way through .... till treatment finished, then I went to pieces. I went into a pretty bad depression and was very very sick with all the usual stuff, vomiting, weight loss, PEG, pain, couldn't, no taste, mucus and the feeling I wasn't getting any better.

    I was taken back into hospital in bad shape about 7 days after being released after treatment. they changed my meds around and that really helped me start to turn the corner. Message here is seek advice AND help if you need it from your doctors or other good practitioners. Just make sure you let them know how you feel. If you need to talk to a pro - TELL them that's what you want. They brought in a Shrink to see me (me who would never need a shrink..) and he casually asked me a bunch of questions and then gave me some happy pills and different pain pills and i actually slept for the first time in months and all calmed down and I started to come good. Since then I see him every so often, he weighs me, asks how long I sleep each night, and reduces the meds so i am now almost off all. Anyway just so you know.

    Cheers
    Scambuster

    Bank It Charles!
    Bank it as soon as possible preferably before you do chemo or radiation. You need to speak with your oncologist, but I'd bank it regardless. It doesn't take much time and if you aren't near a sperm bank you can mail it back in a kit. And with Fairfax Cryobank offering active duty military one year free storage take advantage of it. My husband was medically retired from the Army in May 2008 from brain cancer. We never thought about the effects of his treatment on his fertility. We were planning to try to get pregnant this summer but the brain cancer came back (craniotomy set for 24June2010) so fertility is on our mind. Now considering banking his sperm just in case. Even if you are single or don't know if you want to have kids in the future, bank it now.
  • sweetblood22
    sweetblood22 Member Posts: 3,228
    #6
    wisemommaerts said:

    Bank It Charles!
    Bank it as soon as possible preferably before you do chemo or radiation. You need to speak with your oncologist, but I'd bank it regardless. It doesn't take much time and if you aren't near a sperm bank you can mail it back in a kit. And with Fairfax Cryobank offering active duty military one year free storage take advantage of it. My husband was medically retired from the Army in May 2008 from brain cancer. We never thought about the effects of his treatment on his fertility. We were planning to try to get pregnant this summer but the brain cancer came back (craniotomy set for 24June2010) so fertility is on our mind. Now considering banking his sperm just in case. Even if you are single or don't know if you want to have kids in the future, bank it now.

    This may sound like a
    This may sound like a strange question, but...here goes. When I read the OP, it reminded me that my younger brother said that he was going to bank his before he had his bone marrow transplant in November of 92. He did not make it, and passed away in January of 93. What do they do with what he had stored????? Just makes me think of different ethical situations.
  • Hondo
    Hondo Member Posts: 6,636 Member
    #7
    Irishgypsie said:

    Special Assignment!
    I'm a active duty U.S. Public Health Officer. Google USPHS.GOV. I was in The Air Force twelve years then switched over to the U.S. Public Health service. It's great all the same benefits as active duty Armed Forces branches; but no war zone stuff. Only humanitarian stuff. Having said that I could go to to a big base and be treated at a Military Training Facility MTF. But since I'm Tricare remote I have the option of using civilian doctors. So I'm gonna take advantage of it; they don't do too much cancer stuff for active duty people! I hear what your saying though; but I think I'm gonna store a few specimens just in case!! Thanks!

    Charles

    Hi Charles

    It’s not a bad Idea if you are planning on having more children in the future, I am in the grandchildren stage of life so I have no need of what once was.
  • kit0
    kit0 Member Posts: 9
    #8
    No hesitation, Definitely BANK it!!
    Sorry, I'm a little late on this thread. My advice may be a little late for you Charles, but hopefully it will help anyone new searching for advice. When my husband was diagnosed with NPC in Oct 2009, prior to PET scan results, we were told only rad was necessary and no harm done to fertility since it was head rad. PET scan came back with borderline mestasis, therefore chemo was recommended. He had already started a week of rad, neither Chemo Onc or Rad Onc could give us a definite answer of fertility recovery after chemo. We took it upon ourselves to bank and boy are we glad he did. Now he's close to 1 year post treatment and sperm recovery is slow. About 3 months ago it was non-existent. We started seeing a fertility specialist and he recommended Fertility Blend for Men (herbal vitamin) & also some thyroid medication since his thyroid was slightly irregular. I believe a combination of the med has helped in his sperm recovery. Even with slight recovery of his sperm we will still need assistance to start a family, like IVF perhaps. Still its a little reassuring to have the bank as a backup.
  • timreichhart
    timreichhart Member Posts: 194
    #9
    kit0 said:

    No hesitation, Definitely BANK it!!
    Sorry, I'm a little late on this thread. My advice may be a little late for you Charles, but hopefully it will help anyone new searching for advice. When my husband was diagnosed with NPC in Oct 2009, prior to PET scan results, we were told only rad was necessary and no harm done to fertility since it was head rad. PET scan came back with borderline mestasis, therefore chemo was recommended. He had already started a week of rad, neither Chemo Onc or Rad Onc could give us a definite answer of fertility recovery after chemo. We took it upon ourselves to bank and boy are we glad he did. Now he's close to 1 year post treatment and sperm recovery is slow. About 3 months ago it was non-existent. We started seeing a fertility specialist and he recommended Fertility Blend for Men (herbal vitamin) & also some thyroid medication since his thyroid was slightly irregular. I believe a combination of the med has helped in his sperm recovery. Even with slight recovery of his sperm we will still need assistance to start a family, like IVF perhaps. Still its a little reassuring to have the bank as a backup.

    kit0
    Me and my wife wants to start a family also we only been married year and we are only 24 but we could not afford sperm banking before I started cancer treatments so we are going to get me checked out to see if my sperm as been affected or not from all the cancer treatments. Thanks for saying something about that fertility blend for men to see that is going to work after I get checked out.
  • kit0
    kit0 Member Posts: 9
    #10
    timreichhart said:

    kit0
    Me and my wife wants to start a family also we only been married year and we are only 24 but we could not afford sperm banking before I started cancer treatments so we are going to get me checked out to see if my sperm as been affected or not from all the cancer treatments. Thanks for saying something about that fertility blend for men to see that is going to work after I get checked out.

    Hi Tim, are you done with
    Hi Tim, are you done with treatment? If so how long has it been? I failed to mention that it was cisplatin that my husband received. He was 28 yrs old at the time and we too were only married a year. We will be hitting 1 yr post treatment and although recovery is slower than we hoped (we were told 3-6 months by Onc)he's getting there. Hope all goes well for you and your wife and lots of healthy babies =)
  • timreichhart
    timreichhart Member Posts: 194
    #11
    kit0 said:

    Hi Tim, are you done with
    Hi Tim, are you done with treatment? If so how long has it been? I failed to mention that it was cisplatin that my husband received. He was 28 yrs old at the time and we too were only married a year. We will be hitting 1 yr post treatment and although recovery is slower than we hoped (we were told 3-6 months by Onc)he's getting there. Hope all goes well for you and your wife and lots of healthy babies =)

    about the treatments
    kit0 yes I have been done with all treatments for 2 months before I had cancer me and my wife as been trying and could not get pregnant so my wife is getting a pap test done tomorrow so see if anything is wrong with her then after that is done I am going to get myself tested out to see if my sperm is good or bad from the cancer treatments.

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