Certain Cancer Treatments Will Not Harm The Cardiac, Mental Development of a Future Child

Women on various cancer treatments during their pregnancy, such as chemotherapy or radiotherapy, will not affect the development of their future baby, according to recent findings were presented at the  at the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) 2014. New research shows that neither treatment will affect the child's mental or cardiac development.

"When chemotherapy is administered after the first trimester of pregnancy, we cannot discern any problems in the children," said lead study author Dr. Frederic Amant, KU Leuven and University Hospitals Leuven in Belgium, in a news release. "Fear about the risks of chemotherapy administration should not be a reason to terminate a pregnancy, delay cancer treatment for the mother, or to deliver a baby prematurely."

In the study, researchers examined the mental and cardiac health of 38 children who were exposed to chemotherapy in utero to 38 children who were not exposed to the treatments. The first group of children were taken from the International Network for Cancer, Infertility and Pregnancy (INCIP) registry.

All children were about the age of two and both groups of children had normal mental development based on the Mental Development Index measurement. The children all had normal heart dimensions and functions as well.

Another study by the same research team examined 16 children and 10 adults who were all exposed to radiotherapy in the womb, where researchers looked at their behavioral and neuropsychological health. As one child suffered from cognitive delay, researchers found other confounding factors were also at play in this case.

"It's a good feeling to know that research data can be implemented immediately into the clinic. Our data will inform physicians and patients and help them to take decisions in a difficult situation," Amant concluded.