A LITTLE MIRACLE FOR FATHER’S DAY
CANCER wiped out Gold Coaster Shane Burn’s fertility at the age of 25, but thanks to a quick-thinking medico, he will be celebrating Father’s Day tomorrow.
Four-month-old Gemma is a dream come true for Shane, now 38, and his wife Sarah.
“Shane had no chance of ever being a father if his oncologist had not made the instant decision to freeze his sperm after his devastating leukaemia diagnosis. When people are very unwell the sperm can also be compromised so even then it was not known what the future would hold,” said Dr Michael Flynn, the couple’s fertility doctor from Queensland Fertility Group.
Sarah had her own fertility problems due to endometriosis so the couple’s four-year bid to have a baby was no easy road.
The new dad says the last thing he was thinking about after finding out he had cancer as a young man was having a baby.
“All that was in my head at the time was staying alive but I am forever grateful that I was whisked away for sperm freezing,” he said.
“Gemma has made the tough path all worthwhile and Father’s Day is a very special day for me.”
Chemotherapy attacks normal cells, such as the cells in the lining of the sperm-producing tubes in the testis.
The treatment can temporarily or permanently destroy developing sperm cells.
A third of couples have difficulty conceiving due to a combination of both male and female infertility.