Antral follicle responsiveness to FSH, assessed by the follicular output rate (FORT), is altered in Hodgkin's lymphoma when compared with breast cancer candidates for fertility preservation.

PURPOSE: Oocyte and/or embryo cryopreservation after controlled ovarian hyperstimulation (COH) represents the most established method for female fertility preservation (FP) before cancer treatment. Whether patients suffering from malignancies, candidates for FP, have a normal ovarian capacity to respond to stimulation is controversial. Reduced responsiveness of antral follicle to exogenous FSH might be at play. The percentage of antral follicles that successfully respond to FSH administration may be estimated by the follicular output rate (FORT), which presumably reflects the health of granulosa cells. The present study aims at investigating whether the FORT differs between Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) and breast cancer (BC) patients.

METHODS: Forty-nine BC and 33 HL patient candidates for FP using oocyte vitrification following COH were prospectively studied. FORT was calculated by the ratio between the pre-ovulatory follicle count (16-22 mm) on the day of oocyte triggering × 100/antral follicle count before initiation of the stimulation.

RESULTS: Overall, women in the HL group were younger in comparison with BC patients (26.4 ± 3.9 vs 33.6 ± 3.3 years, p < 0.0001, respectively). The FORT was significantly decreased in patients with HL when compared with BC group (27.0 ± 18.8 vs 39.8 ± 18.9%, p = 0.004, respectively), further leading to a comparable number of oocytes vitrified (10.8 ± 5.9 vs 10.2 ± 7.7 oocytes, p = 0.7, respectively).

CONCLUSION: The present findings indicate that the percentage of antral follicles that successfully respond to FSH administration is reduced in HL when compared to BC patients, supporting the hypothesis of a detrimental effect of hemopathy on follicular health. In vitro experimentations might provide additional data to confirm this hypothesis.