Assisted reproductive technology, pregnancy and recurrent disease in melanoma patients: a 30-year single institution experience.

Abstract

Objectives The aim of this study is to assess differences in melanoma recurrence between patients conceiving spontaneously versus those undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART), to determine use of ART in post-melanoma patients and to examine the impact of counseling of this specific patient group. Design This study is a 30-year analysis including data from a single center questionnaire and a retrospective cohort study. Participants/Materials Women of childbearing age with a history of melanoma were requested to participate in our study. We selected patients who underwent either primary melanoma treatment or treatment of local / distant recurrence at our institute between 1994 and 2021. Each participant received a questionnaire and informed consent form. The questions concerned general health, primary tumor characteristics, utilization of ART, subsequent pregnancies and development of recurrent melanoma. Additional information was collected from the medical files. Setting The research was conducted in a dedicated oncology center and tertiary referral center for melanoma in The Netherlands. Methods Participants received the questionnaires by mail. Six weeks later a reminder was sent to non-responders. Analysis was performed using descriptive statistics. For comparisons between groups Chi-square tests were used. P-value was considered significant when below 0.05. A clinically relevant difference in recurrence rate was defined as a 10% difference. Results A total of 498 questionnaires were available for analyses, 449 from living patients and 49 from relatives of diseased patients. One hundred and seventy-nine patients (36%) with a history of melanoma became pregnant following their diagnosis. In this group, 28 patients (16%) attempted to conceive using ART, and eight of them experienced disease recurrence. There was no difference in the recurrence rate between patients who became pregnant after the diagnosis of melanoma and those who never subsequently conceived (37% vs 35%, p=0.609). Limitations The main limitations of the study are its size, observational design and questionnaire methodology. Conclusions Pregnancy did not increase the risk of recurrent melanoma. The group of patients conceiving after ART was small and therefore it is difficult to confidently conclude that the recurrence risk is comparable to the other groups. Prospective international registration of these patients, their oncologic follow-up and possible use of assisted reproduction, will provide valuable information to determine any potential association between ART and risk of recurrent melanoma. This would enable health professionals to develop surveillance strategies and pre-conception counselling of patients wishing to conceive.