[ashleygabby]

My husband had thyroid cancer ! He had radiation therapy and also had his thyroid removed! Can this cause him to become infertile? I need to know!

[J_9]

Radiation may reduce the sprem count and/or limit sperm mobility, as well as the possibility of infertility.

This is something that you must discuss with the oncologist.

The removal of the thyroid will not cause infertility in and of itself, but the radiation may have an impact.

[jgj6331]

If he received an injection of radioactive iodine for thyroid ablation - this could indeed lead to a lower sperm count - but this is usually transient (temporary). The following is paraphrased from MyThyroid.com :

"There is very little good data that addresses this issue, but some studies have reported a transient decrease in sperm counts in treated subjects, and rare cases of testicular damage in younger males have been reported. Furthermore, transient decreases in testicular function and sperm counts have also been described in subjects with hyperthyroidism treated with radioactive iodine. Hence, for young men considering a family in the future, who may be exposed to multiple radioactive iodine treatments sperm banking prior to treatment is an option to be considered. Nevertheless, analysis of fertility and pregnancy outcomes in the setting where the father had received radioactive iodine treatment for thyroid cancer revealed no significant impairment in fertility, nor any problems with the children."

In other words, there are some risks but they are likely temporary and only rarely permanent. Hope this helps... Please discuss this with your husband's oncologist and endocrinologist as well as with your gynecologist. They may recommend a waiting period before you consider getting pregnant.

[princessluvv]

Signs and symptoms that may be associated with thyroid cancer include:

Enlarged cervical (neck) lymph nodes
Hoarse voice
Dysphagia - difficulty in swallowing
Persistent cough
Dyspnea - shortness of breath

Patients who require multiple radioiodine doses may have a greater risk of gonadal damage but, even in these patients, no evidence of infertility was found, the investigators report.

Study the results below:
One hundred and six children were fathered by 59 of the 122 patients during a median follow-up time of 21 years. The remaining patients were not attempting to have children.

Of the patients who fathered children, 12 had received a single 3 GBq dose of radioiodine, 19 had received up to 14 GBq of radioiodine and 28 had received up to 28 GBq.

Median radiation dose to each testis in the 14 patients followed prospectively was 6.4 cGy after 3 GBq, 14.1 cGy after 5.5 GBq and 21.2 cGy after 9.2 GBq.

A transient elevation in serum follicle stimulating hormone was observed after radioiodine treatment, but levels normalized within nine months of the final treatment.

[princessluvv]

Study this
One hundred and six children were fathered by 59 of the 122 patients during a median follow-up time of 21 years. The remaining patients were not attempting to have children.

Of the patients who fathered children, 12 had received a single 3 GBq dose of radioiodine, 19 had received up to 14 GBq of radioiodine and 28 had received up to 28 GBq.

Median radiation dose to each testis in the 14 patients followed prospectively was 6.4 cGy after 3 GBq, 14.1 cGy after 5.5 GBq and 21.2 cGy after 9.2 GBq.

A transient elevation in serum follicle stimulating hormone was observed after radioiodine treatment, but levels normalized within nine months of the final treatment.