Systematic Review of Available Guidelines on Fertility Preservation of Young Patients with Breast Cancer

Background: Since the survival rate of breast cancer patients has improved, harmful effects of new treatmentmodalities on fertility of the young breast cancer patients has become a focus of attention. This study aimed tosystematically review and critically appraise all available guidelines for fertility preservation in young breastcancer patients. Materials and
Methods: Major citation databases were searched for treatment guidelines. Expertsfrom relevant disciplines appraised the available guidelines. The AGREE II Instrument that includes 23 criteriain seven domains (scope and purpose of the guidelines, stakeholder involvement, rigor of development, clarity,applicability, editorial independence, and overall quality) was used to apprise and score the guidelines.
Results:The search strategy retrieved 2,606 citations; 72 were considered for full-text screening and seven guidelines wereincluded in the study. There was variability in the scores assigned to different domains among the guidelines.ASCO (2013), with an overall score of 68.0%, had the highest score, and St Gallen, with an overall score of24.7%, had the lowest scores among the guidelines.
Conclusions: With the promising survival rate among breastcancer patients, more attention should be given to include specific fertility preservation recommendations foryoung breast cancer patients.