Advanced Biomedical Research

Study of the prevalence of azoospermia in patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma prior to treatment

Authors

1 Department of Oncology, Medical School, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran

2 Department of Biology, Isfahan University, Isfahan, Iran

Abstract

Background: Infertility is one of the main problems of patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma, as this causes specific effects in the social, family, and emotional life of patients. Hodgkin's lymphoma is a neoplastic disorder that comprises of 0.6% of all cancers and often occurs in middle-aged people, with a mean age of 26 years. It originates from neoplastic changes in the lymphoid cells, which lead to different complications in the body organs. One important complication of Hodgkin's lymphoma is humoral and cellular immune system dysfunction that can cause numerous and dangerous problems for patients. Another complication of Hodgkin's lymphoma is sterility, more specifically hypogonadism and azoospermia. Sterility may appear after treatment. Considering that most patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma have a good survival, diagnosing and treating this complication and preventing its incidence contributes to improving the quality of social life and emotional status of these patients.
Materials and Methods: In this study, 238 patients whose Hodgkin's lymphoma was approved by Pathology were included in the study, before receiving any medical intervention, and they were examined for sterility (sperm status). Sterility of the male patients was confirmed using a spermogram test. The serum levels of the luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and testosterone (T) were checked.
Results: Among the studied patients, 24 patients (10.08%) suffered from azoospermia, which was evident in its progressive stages.
Conclusion: In such cases, treatment of Hodgkin's lymphoma and improvement of the immune system could overcome azoospermia and sterility.

Keywords

1. Rosenberg SA. The management of Hodgkin's disease: Half a century of change. The Kaplan Memorial Lecture. Ann Oncol 1996;7:555-60.  Back to cited text no. 1
[PUBMED]    
2. Helman D. Rosenberg's. Cancer Principles and Practice of Oncology. 9th ed. New York: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins; 2011.  Back to cited text no. 2
    
3. Bojesen A, Juul S, Birkebaek NH, Gravholt CH. Morbidity in Klinefelter syndrome: A Danish register study based on hospital discharge diagnoses. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2006;91:1254-60.  Back to cited text no. 3
[PUBMED]    
4. Meirow D, Schenker JG. Cancer and male infertility. Hum Reprod 1995;10:2017-22.  Back to cited text no. 4
[PUBMED]    
5. Sigman M, Baazeem A, Zini A. Semen analysis and sperm function assays: What do they mean? Semin Reprod Med 2009;27:115-23.  Back to cited text no. 5
[PUBMED]    
6. Berman M, Englewood Cliffs NJ. Male Infertility Best Practice Policy Committee Members and Consultants. American Urological Association; American Society for Reproductive Medicine. 2001.  Back to cited text no. 6
    
7. M'kacher R, Bennaceur-Griscelli A, Girinsky T, Koscielny S, Delhommeau F, Dossou J, et al. Telomere shortening and associated chromosomal instability in peripheral blood lymphocytes of patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma prior to any treatment are predictive of second cancers. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2007;68:465-71.  Back to cited text no. 7
[PUBMED]    
8. Schover LR, Brey K, Lichtin A, Lipshultz LI, Jeha S. Knowledge and experience regarding cancer, infertility, and sperm banking in younger male survivors. J Clin Oncol 2002;20:1880-9.  Back to cited text no. 8
[PUBMED]    
9. Behringer K, Breuer K, Reineke T, May M, Nogova L, Klimm B. Secondary amenorrhea after Hodgkin's lymphoma is influenced by age at treatment, stage of disease, chemotherapy regimen, and the use of oral contraceptives during therapy: A report from the German Hodgkin's Lymphoma Study Group. J Clin Oncol 2005;23:7555-64.  Back to cited text no. 9
    
10. Rueffer U, Breuer K, Josting A, Lathan B, Sieber M, Manzke O. Male gonadal dysfunction in patients with Hodgkin's disease prior to treatment. Ann Oncol 2001;12:1307-11.  Back to cited text no. 10
    
11. Chapman RM, Sutcliffe SB, Malpas JS. Male gonadal dysfunction in Hodgkin's disease. A prospective study. JAMA 1981;245:1323-8.  Back to cited text no. 11
[PUBMED]    
12. Ragni G, Bestetti O, Santoro A, Viviani S, Di Pietro R, De Lauretis L. Evaluation of semen and pituitary gonadotropin function in men with untreated Hodgkin's disease. Fertil Steril 1985;43:927-30.  Back to cited text no. 12
[PUBMED]    
13. Viviani S, Ragni G, Santoro A, Perotti L, Caccamo E, Negretti E. Testicular dysfunction in Hodgkin's disease before and after treatment. Eur J Cancer 1991;27:1389-92.  Back to cited text no. 13
    
14. van der Kaaij MA, van Echten-Arends J, Simons AH, Kluin-Nelemans HC. Fertility preservation after chemotherapy for Hodgkin lymphoma. Hematol Oncol 2010;28:168-79.  Back to cited text no. 14
[PUBMED]    
15. Harel S, Fermé C, Poirot C. Management of fertility in patients treated for Hodgkin's lymphoma. Haematologica 2011;96:1692-9.  Back to cited text no. 15
    
16. Dohle GR. Male infertility in cancer patients: Review of the literature. Int J Urol 2010;17:327-31.  Back to cited text no. 16
[PUBMED]    
Advanced Biomedical Research
Volume 2013, July
July 2013
Pages 1-4