Daily Mirror - 27.08.2019

mirror.co.uk TUESDAY 27.08.2019 DAILY MIRROR^31

DM1ST

32 THE GENDER HEALTH GAP

33 ME & BODY: GLENN HODDLE

34 DR MIRIAM STOPPARD

Be your best

GET IN TOUCH [email protected] EDITED BY AMY PACKER

READY In hospital with support from Luke

We’re giving

women a

choice to

take control

Professor Simon Fishel, founder

of ProFam, the Birmingham clinic

which pioneered the treatment,

says the ovarian graft may soon

become a lifestyle choice for

hundreds of women.

“This treatment has been

developed on the back of 20

years of work with cancer

patients, where doctors removed

some ovarian tissue to try to

preserve the patient’s fertility if

they were about to go through

treatment. All we’ve done is

joined the dots.

“It is performed as keyhole

surgery and around one-third to a

half of the outside of a single

ovary is removed. This

tissue is transported

under sterile

conditions to a

specialist

laboratory.

“Once in the

laboratory, the

ovarian tissue

that has been

removed is thinly

sliced into strips.

Depending on

the age of the

woman, these

strips may contain

hundreds or

thousands of potential

eggs.

“By removing them, in a

way you preserve a woman’s

fertility – but you also preserve

the hormones that produce the

eggs and regulate your

reproductive cycle. These are

your natural, physiological

hormones. We bathe the tissue in

protective nutrients and store it

at -150C.

“We felt that a younger

generation of women could

benefit from this. You not only

preserve your fertility allowing

you to have children later in life –

especially helpful for women who

want a baby when they are 40 –

but you also preserve hormones.

Around 65% of women need

some clinical support as they go

through the menopause.

If you were someone who

needed HRT, this would allow you

to choose your own natural

hormones instead.

“Presumably, this is a lot

healthier for many women as we

know HRT is not for everyone. It

costs between £3,000 and

£6,000.

“Women are living longer than

before and it’s quite possible they

will spend longer in menopause

than their fertile period. We are

empowering women to take

control of their own health.”

y

se

Some of my

organs were

fused so that

had to be

fixed too. I

was on the

operating

table for six

hours

It is up to

each woman.

There is a

choice that

didn’t exist

until now...

delaying

menopause

can help

Y

LY

ne and

with Luna

LIFE

CHANGER

Emeline with

daughter Luna

HOW

IT WORKS

■ The patient’s ovaries are removed and sent

to a laboratory where healthy ovarian tissue which

contains most of the follicles is set aside. The tissue

is thinly sliced into strips. Depending on the age of

the woman, these strips may contain hundreds or

thousands of potential eggs.

■ This tissue can either be frozen at –150C for women

who simply want to delay the menopause later, or in patients

like Emeline it is immediately grafted back into the body.

■ The healthy tissue is grafted on to the side

of the pelvis. This part of the procedure

takes around 30mins.

■ For 95% of patients who have tissue grafted

back into their body, their hormones are kick-

started within four to six months and their

normal cycle returns, preventing

menopausal symptoms for as

long as 20 years.

they were in a bad condition. I was

ncerned about this bringing on early

enopause. I was only 31 at the time.

“Mr Afifi told me about a procedure

here healthy tissue is taken from your

aries and grafted on to the side of your

lvis. He said if it worked, my body

ould create exactly the same hormones

before and it would prevent the

enopause starting.”

Emeline decided to go ahead with the

HS-funded procedure, which was carried

t at Birmingham Women and Children’s

ospital in November last year. Her ovaries

were removed and, after being

sent to a laboratory, some of

the healthy ovarian tissue

was grafted on to the right

side of her pelvis.

The procedure tricks the

body into releasing hormones

which delay the menopause.

The operation hit the

headlines earlier this month

with the idea that young

women could choose to

have their ovarian

tissue frozen and

transplanted back

years later,

reversing

the meno-

pause and

helping to

preserve their fertility. “I was a little

nervous at first,” Emeline says. “It’s quite

a new surgery. But I had faith in Mr Afifi.

I felt I had nothing to lose.

“It was quite a lengthy procedure.

Some of my organs were fused together

because of the endometriosis and that

had to be fixed too, so I was on the

operating table for six hours.”

But just 24 hours later, Emeline was

allowed home. “I was out of the hospital

the very next day,” she says. “I had no side

effects. I was completely fine. For about

three days I was taking it slow, but I felt

well and returned to work after a month.”

As her ovaries had been removed,

Emeline began to experience all the

symptoms of an early menopause as the

graft needs around three months to take

effect. “I was suffering everything you

would expect,” she says. “Hot flushes,

migraines, fatigue. It was quite a hard

time. I had a two-year-old to look after

and yet my body felt like it belonged to

someone in their 50s.

“But after about three months the

symptoms vanished. I was perfectly fine,

as if nothing ever happened.

“Even more surprising than that, I

started bleeding again. I now have periods

as normal every month. It’s not painful as

it was when I had the endometriosis. I

can’t have any more children but I knew

that would be the deal. It’s the

best operation I’ve ever had.”

Mr Afifi said that many

women with endometriosis

have to have their ovaries and

uterus removed, leaving them

infertile and battling early

menopause.

“This operation is something

quite unique,” he says. “It is an

incredible way of improving

quality of life for a large number

of women for a long period of

their lives.

“Of course, some people will be against

it. Some women may not want to delay

the menopause but the majority welcome

such intervention. The point is, it’s up to

each woman. There is a choice and it’s a

choice that didn’t exist until now. There

are women like Emeline who are having

this

procedure for

clinical reasons.

“Then there is another group who can

choose to have some ovarian tissue taken

out and this has no impact on their

fertility or on the age at which they’d go

through the menopause. If they then

choose at a later date, this tissue can be

used to extend their hormonal status.

“By delaying the menopause in any of

these women, you reduce the risk of

complications caused by the menopause

• such as cardiovascular
  disease, mental health or
  osteoporosis.”
  Emeline expects that she
  will now go through the
  menopause as most women
  do, at around the age of 50.
  “It’s hard to know what will
  happen as this is such a new
  procedure,” she says.
  “But my understanding is
  that it will be pretty normal
  and I’ll experience the meno-
  pause later in life like any other healthy
  woman would do.
  “I can genuinely say Mr Afifi saved my
  life, the pain was horrendous and I was
  tired of fighting it. Thanks to this surgery
  I have a normal life as a healthy and
  happy mum.”
  ■ For more info go to profam.co.uk