Pregnancy following oophoropexy and total nodal irradiation in women with Hodgkin's disease.

During the past decade at Stanford University Medical Center, in an attempt to protect ovarian function in young female patients irradiated for Hodgkin's disease, oophoropexy has been performed at the time of surgical staging. When pelvic irradiation is administered, a 10-cm thick lead block is used to shield the ovaries in the midline. With this technique, two-thirds of women have retained ovarian function, and nine women who underwent oophoropexy prior to high-dose pelvic irradiation have become pregnant. Six patients have given birth to eight babies. An additional two patients have had therapeutic abortions and one, a spontaneous abortion. The minimum radiation dose to the ovaries was 350 to 400 rads in 39 to 46 days. No abnormalities have been observed in the children; no ectopic pregnancies have occurred.