The Human Oocyte Preservation Experience (HOPE) a phase IV, prospective, multicenter, observational oocyte cryopreservation registry

The intent of the HOPE Registry is to enroll approximately 400 women of reproductive age who will undergo thawing/warming of oocytes and subsequent transfer. Data from the patients enrolled will be collected via a uniform, standardized form and will document important parameters such as demographics, laboratory procedures and outcomes, including following the outcomes of babies born for one year after birth. The results of the registry will be published on a yearly basis.A patient registry has been established in order to systematically document the techniques and outcomes of oocyte cryopreservation procedures. The results will be published in order to provide a widely accessible resource that will allow patients who are considering these procedures validated information in order to make informed decisions as to how their treatment will proceed.The American Cancer Society recently reported a 32% increase in cancer survival rates for all cancers diagnosed from 1996 and 2003 [1]. In the past five years, the number of novel cancer treatments has increased over 50%, and it is estimated that >1,400 new drug applications for cancer treatment will be submitted in 2008 [2]. With heightened public awareness, more aggressive screening and treatment innovation, survival rates are anticipated to increase steadily, allowing more patients to look forward to a near-normal life after cancer.Unfortunately, cancer treatment often results in infertility [3]. For example, Goodwin et al. estimated that 53 to 89% of breast cancer patients treated with chemotherapy undergo premature menopause, and that the risk for premature menopause was found to be strongly associated with the age of the patient and the use of systemic chemotherapy [4]. The use of alkylating agents has been shown to increase the risk of premature ovarian failure nine-fold [5].These findings have led the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine to issue guidelines recommend