MP18-14: Assessment of the Urological Needs of Adolescents and Young Adults Surviving Cancer and/or Blood and Marrow Transplantation at A Single Tertiary Center
Medical College of Wisconsin & Children's Wisconsin
Introduction: As more children survive childhood cancer and blood and marrow transplantation (BMT), focus on genitourinary survivorship including fertility but also urinary and sexual function has become increasingly important in recent years. As children survive these treatments and enter into adulthood, quality of life questions exist with regard to fertility and genitourinary function. Because such sensitive topics may not be volunteered in routine follow-up care, we sought to standardize a process to elicit such concerns within our oncology and BMT survivorship clinic. Methods: Surveys regarding genitourinary symptoms were co-developed by a multidisciplinary survivorship team. Surveys were administered to all adolescents and young adults (AYA, age 15+) that attend our Children’s Wisconsin Next Steps survivorship clinic yearly. These are AYA patients that have a history of treatment for childhood cancer or BMT and have completed their full respective treatment courses a minimum of 2 years prior. The fifteen survey questions asked the patients about various genitourinary symptoms that they may have experienced since their treatment, including specific questions about fertility, sexual function, and lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Results: A total of 142 unique responses were received between March 2021 to June 2022. The average age of respondents were 19 years old (15 -33 years) and 72 self-identified as men (50%). Forty seven percent were interested in learning more about fertility now or in the near future and 28% had already met with a fertility specialist. Ten (7%) complained of new onset LUTS. Six (4%) complained of difficulty with sexual function with 50 other patients saying they haven’t been sexually active yet. Seventy two (50%) were aware of possible fertility, sexual and/or LUTS side effects of their treatments. Conclusions: While fertility remains a critical issue with high interest in the AYA survivorship group, over 10% of survivors have issues with sexual and/or urinary function and control. The majority of survivors responded they were aware of possible fertility, urinary, and/or sexual side effects from their cancer and/or BMT. In addition to fertility preservation, discussions regarding genitourinary function need to be had with all AYA survivors. Genitourinary side effects in survivors of pediatric cancer treatments and BMT remains an understudied field. These patients may benefit from directed questions regarding symptomatology to help facilitate appropriate referral and treatment. SOURCE OF Funding: none
