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Impact of CML on marriage.

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I'm taking Imatanib for 3 years now. I'm going to marry my long-term girlfriend next month. Is it safe to have a kids ?? Wether this CML will pass on to my kids ??

Hi there have been other threads on this subject like this one.

https://www.cmlsupport.org.uk/thread/12271/dealing-cml#post-52066

This thread contains a number of links which may be useful. There seems to be a consensus that men fathering children while taking imatinib is not a problem. It is more challenging (but not impossible) if a lady with CML wants to have a baby.

 

You will find a bunch of threads about fathering a child on imatinib, and as Alastair says the consensus is that this is safe. In the “videos” section of this site, you will find a couple of videos with Jane Apperley presenting. Have a watch of these (use the search function on this site to find them). They any put your mind at ease.

You cannot pass on CML to a baby. It’s not possible.

David.

You ask is it safe to have kids .... that's a difficult question. Kids grow up to be teenagers. They think you are stupid when they get to that age. They challenge everything you tell them, question everything and otherwise make you regret ever having them - until they make you proud ....

but  oh ... I don't think that's what you meant to ask. You probably meant to ask will TKI's and CML be a problem "making" kids. The answer to that is absolutely not. Current evidence shows fathering children during TKI treatment is safe. For women, they should not take any TKI during conception and pregnancy. Only women in MMR with few or better zero blasts should consider pregnancy. Many women have successfully carried healthy babies to term and then resume therapy to regain CML control.

But back to is it safe to have kids. They bring home friends who trash your home, they insist on learning how to drive, they cost A LOT OF MONEY, they don't think, they ......

You all might laugh at me for this, but here is an article in a not-very-impressive "journal" (People magazine) about Bryan Boyle, a professional hockey player who has CML. He is still playing and doing well on the ice. He is expecting another baby too! Everyone can take heart! He inspires me.

https://people.com/health/nhl-brian-boyle-leukemia-treatment/?xid=social...

Hi

I was on nilotinib when i had my first child, he is now 16 months and healthy. I have been on dasatinib since 1 year( due to nilotinib resistance), now wifey pregnant with second , she is 13 weeks and so far all checks are normal on sonography and blood tests. My hematologist will and can never say never(due to lack of enough evidence based medicine) but he seems to think TKis do not affect sperm but concludes saying you have to be aware there are risks and I bear them( which is fair from medico legal sense)
Of course i dont think suitable for women to bear kids if they themselves are on TKi, correct me if im wrong...

Good information here.  My wife and I had been discussing having a second child, our first was born two weeks after my diagnosis.  The doctors at Seidman Cancer Center recommended that I have my sperm frozen but I never did, at that time all I was concerned with was getting my CML under control.  I am currently CMR (last PCR 0.006) and recently asked my doctor about conceiving a child.  The nurse brought back the mice study information and told me I would need to stop my Imatinib (400 mg) for seven months before trying to conceive.  

 

With this new information, I am going to discuss with my wife again and also forward all of it on to my Oncologist.  

 

Thanks everyone for contributing.

That is certainly outdated advice. Most doctors, these days, would say it is fine to father a child on imatinib. And the conclusion for the other TKIs is rapidly going that same direction.

I would urge you to watch this video of these slides. It's by Jane Apperley, who is one of the foremost authorities on this particular topic.

I'm on dastinib, and spoke to Jane about fathering a child whilst taking it. Her advice was "just go for it", even though I do have sperm in the freezer. That approach bore fruit ... well, two fruits, but that can't be blamed on the TKI!

David.