Cancer survivors losing chance to be fathers, warn doctors Young male cancer patients - some in their teens - often have their sperm frozen before undergoing life-saving chemotherapy or radiotherapy which could leave them infertile. But many do not know that regulations state that their sperm should be destroyed after a decade, if they have not been confirmed as infertile. A Sheffield University study of 193 male cancer survivors found that a third had never attended a follow-up appointment to assess their fertility, while another third had only attended once. Results of the study, funded by Cancer Research UK, are being presented at the Fertility 2013 conference in Liverpool. Dr Allan Pacey, senior lecturer in andrology at Sheffield University, and chairman of the British Fertility Society, said: "Trying to engage men with this subject is notoriously difficult. For those of us who run sperm banks, many men store their sperm and then do not contact us again, even though there are legal reasons to keep in contact. Our research suggests that there is a need to educate men about the benefits of attending follow-up fertility clinics and the long-term consequences of non-attendance. Christine Eiser, professor of psychology at the university, added: "Sperm banking is highly valued by men who want the option to have children once cancer treatment is completed. Our research found that many men do not know how cancer treatment can affect their fertility or the likelihood of fertility recovery over the long-term. Having received a cancer diagnosis, patients immediately need to take in a lot of information regarding treatments and side-effects and it can be challenging to discuss potential longer-term effects on fertility at this time.