Recovery of fertility after grafting of cryopreserved germinative tissue in female rabbits following radiotherapy

BACKGROUND: Many cancer survivors face infertility as a consequenceof the aggressive treatment they must undergo. Cryopreservationof ovarian tissue before chemotherapy or radiotherapy may allowfor tissue transplantation after the treatment, and restorationof fertility. We tested the potential of an orthotopic autograftingof cryopreserved germinative tissue in female rabbits with ovarianfailure following radiotherapy. METHODS: Ten adult multiparousfemale rabbits were randomly allocated into two groups, fivein group I (control) and five in group II (transplant). Allrabbits underwent right oophorectomy with cryopreservation ofthe germinative tissue, followed by sterilization of the remainingleft ovary by radiotherapy. Later, group II rabbits receivedin the irradiated left ovary an implant of the frozen germinativetissue from the right ovary, whose small pieces were freelyspread intracortically in a procedure we named ‘intracorticalsowing of germinative tissue’ (ISGT). RESULTS: All groupII rabbits conceived following spontaneous mating within 6 monthsof the transplant, whereas none of the remaining rabbits ingroup I had conceived up to 11 months after transplant. CONCLUSIONS:This study suggests that fertility can be restored in rabbitsby sowing cortical tissue in a previously irradiated ovary.The clinical feasibility of this technique remains to be determined.