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ST. LOUIS (AP) - When Joy Lagos learned she had cancer, she had enough hope to believe she would beat it. What brought the San Francisco resident to tears, however, was knowing that radiation and chemotherapy would lead to early menopause and rob her of the chance to have children. Last week, that changed. A renowned infertility expert in suburban St. Louis transplanted a whole ovary from Lagos' sister into Lagos, a step that could enable her to have children.
Dr. Sherman Silber completed the whole ovary transplant Feb. 5 in Missouri after performing the same procedure between twins last month.
The surgery could restore normal hormone function for women going through early menopause. It also could mean that one day a woman with cancer could freeze an ovary, undergo chemotherapy and radiation, and have her own ovary returned later to restore her fertility.
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