Shedding light on the fertility preservation debate in women with endometriosis: a swot analysis

Endometriosis, a hormone-dependant condition affecting around 10% of women in their reproductive years, has frequent consequences on fertility. Indeed, a proportion of women will require assisted reproductive techniques or surgery in order to achieve pregnancy. Recent refining of stimulation protocols and vitrification techniques has created new possibilities in the field of fertility preservation. As a consequence, oocyte vitrification is now discussed not only in oncologic situations, but also in other conditions at risk of altered ovarian reserve and poor fertility outcome. In endometriosis, various mechanisms can impair ovarian function and diminish ovarian, particularly bilateral or repeated cystectomy. Fertility preservation could represent an option for women with endometriosis but still remains controversial. In order to shed some light on this complex subject and to outline different issues at stake we conducted a SWOT analysis highlighting strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of oocyte vitrification in women with endometriosis. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.