PReserving Fertility and Quality of Life IN Belgian Female Paediatric CancEr SurvivorS

A. Objectives:

In a cohort of female survivors of paediatric cancer aged of at least 18 years old at the time of evaluation, the main objectives of the project PRINCESS are:

1. to evaluate the impact of low-intermediate dose alkylating agents on ovarian function and fertility;
2. to assess the impact of ovarian tissue cryopreservation, used as fertility preservation technique, on further ovarian function and fertility;
3. to identify new screening tools of premature ovarian insufficiency, using targeted and whole genome methylation techniques.

B. Project Design:

The complementarity of the promoters 'and co-applicants skills allows the building of a national translational team which relies on the pre-clinical, clinical and research expertise of paediatric oncologists (Drs Dedeken, De Ville de Goyet and Piette), endocrinologist (Dre Parent) and gynaecologists (Drs Demeestere, Dolmans, Henry and Jadoul). The promoter and co-promotor will directly supervise Dr Bianca David (PhD student) who will contribute to all aspects of the research. The PhD student will be hosted in the LBTD/GIGA-Cancer/Neurosciences and will benefit from its infrastructure, the help of technicians and the expertise of the AS Parent team for epigenetic studies.