Why is protection of the ovaries important during chemotherapy?

Commonly used drugs for ovarian cancer chemotherapy are those with moderate toxicity to the ovary, such as cisplatin and carboplatin, adriamycin, etc. Paclitaxel and VP16 have unclear toxicity, and bleomycin belongs to the low-toxicity category; alkylating agents, such as cyclophosphamide, which are highly toxic, are less frequently used. Therefore, chemotherapy for early ovarian cancer after fertility preservation surgery requires ovarian protection, especially of the follicular reserve. Impaired ovarian function after chemotherapy is often manifested by menopause and decreased menstruation, vaginal dryness, and infertility caused by non-ovulation. Examination may reveal increased levels of FSH and LH and decreased levels of sex hormones, with a significant decrease in the number of follicles of all types. Animal experiments have demonstrated that gonadotropin-releasing hormone analogs (GnRH-a) can inhibit chemotherapy-induced follicular depletion in rats and protect the function of the ovaries; however, ovarian function damage caused by radiotherapy in rats does not benefit from the use of GnRH-a. It is now believed that GnRH-a inhibits gonadotropin secretion, resulting in a decrease in the number of primordial follicles entering differentiation and a “dormant” ovary that is less sensitive to chemotherapy. In addition, GnRH-a may also protect the ovaries by decreasing blood supply to the ovaries and uterus, decreasing oocyte apoptosis, and indirectly resisting chemotherapy-induced apoptosis, etc. Blumenfeld reported that only 6.7% (5/75) of young patients treated with GnRH-a in conjunction with chemotherapy developed premature ovarian failure, while more than half of the control patients treated without GnRH-a developed premature ovarian failure after chemotherapy. More than half of the control patients without GnRH-a developed premature ovarian failure (53.7%, 44/82),and there was a significant difference between the two groups (P<0.05). Currently, several meta-analyses have shown that starting gnrh-a 14 days before chemotherapy and injecting gnrh-a every 4 weeks thereafter until the end of chemotherapy can significantly protect ovarian function, reduce the rate of amenorrhea after chemotherapy, and increase the pregnancy rate after chemotherapy, while not significantly affecting the efficacy of chemotherapy. Although this method of ovarian protection has not yet entered the norms and guidelines, it can be considered on the basis of fully informed consent, and we look forward to the results of phase iii randomized controlled clinical trials as soon as possible.