Impairment of fertility is a common consequence of standard therapy currently used for cancer treatment. Fertility concern is a critical factor for many young women and can associate with poorer quality of life and psychosocial distress. In this sense different fertility preservation options are available. Nevertheless, their use is limited by the devastating lack of appropriate fertility counseling and fertility preservation centers. Recently, ovarian reserve testing for cancer patients is used as a counseling tool and can aid on deciding the right treatment for each woman. Thus, in this study we aim to identify fertility concerns and related barriers that make it difficult to undergo counseling and/or fertility preservation contributing to better understanding of patients’ needs and improve their quality of life.

This is a mixed-methods study combining a prospective cohort study with a descriptive study following an explanatory sequential design that will be conducted at the American University of Beirut Medical Center.

Given that the estimated average number of patients treated for breast cancer and lymphoma annually at AUBMC is somewhere around 100-150 patients below 42 and meeting the inclusion criteria, thus we expect to have around 200-250 potentially eligible breast cancer and lymphoma patients during the 2 years of the study. The total number of patients will be 200.