Grant: Catalyst Grant: Personalized Health Catalyst Grants

The ability to have children in the future is a major concern for young adults diagnosed with cancer. Some cancer treatments may reduce the chance of having children and currently many young adults do not receive enough information to make informed fertility decisions before treatment. More young adults are surviving cancer and the inability to have children due to their cancer treatment can cause negative emotions and lower wellbeing. Making a fertility decision before cancer treatment is hard and young adults may feel conflicted because the fertility options may delay treatment, be costly, and do not guarantee the ability to have children after treatment. Our research team has created a paper decision aid called the BEFORE (Begin Exploring Fertility Options, Risks and Expectations) for young Canadian breast cancer patients to help them weigh the risks and benefits of each fertility option allowing for an informed decision that is made in partnership with their health care providers. The goal of this study is to build on the work to offer a BEFORE app version of the decision aid and expand the decision aid to all young adults with any cancer needing to make fertility decisions. This app will allow young adults to learn more about the cancer treatment that can affect their fertility, fertility options available before and after cancer treatment, provide a personal exercise to help consider which options are right for them, provide resources for extra information and support, and sample questions to ask their health care team. The field of cancer and fertility is growing and to address this we will ensure the BEFORE app can be easily updated to include new fertility options and changes in recommendations as they occur. The BEFORE app will help to begin fertility conversations between young cancer patients and their health care providers to ensure patients make informed fertility decisions that reflect their values before starting cancer treatment.