Outcomes of delivering a fertility preservation service for women with cancer over a 12-year period at a UK assisted conception unit

This service evaluation aimed to appraise the delivery of a fertility preservation service for women with cancer which was established in 2005 as part of an Assisted Conception Unit. First, the ACU-database was interrogated between 08/2005 and 01/2017; revealing 174 women received referrals over the 12-year period with a steady referral increase each year. Demographic analyses revealed factors, such as being partnered, to be strong indicators of whether women would seek FP or not. To improve service provision, women who had consented to be contacted for audit, administrative and research purposes, received questionnaires to ascertain their perspectives on the FP decision-making process, their outcomes and ACU after-care. The majority perceived their experience as excellent due to the care they received from ACU staff, speed and efficiency in service delivery. The increasing number of referrals since 2005 is reassuring. However, this audit also highlighted shortcomings of the service, such as limited awareness of the fertility counselling service and lack of after-care.