As young people increasingly get cancer, new fertility options change their futures

Shortly after her wedding four years ago, Jenilee Crowley felt ready to start having kids. Then the 38-year-old found a lump in her breast that upended all her future plans.

Chemotherapy, radiation, and other cancer treatments come with a slew of side effects, including hormone changes and potential organ damage that can risk a person’s fertility.

But Crowley, who was diagnosed with stage one breast cancer in 2022, learned that she had options. After a double mastectomy to remove the cancer, Crowley started hormone therapy to help prevent it from returning. Then, under medical guidance from her team at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, she paused the treatment so that she and her husband could freeze embryos and try for a baby. Her son, Archer, is now four months old.