Concerns like the health of future children are top-of-mind for many adolescents and young adults (AYA) diagnosed with cancer. We linked population-based data from the Texas Cancer Registry with the Texas Birth Defects Registry to estimate risk of birth defects in offspring of AYAs over a 17-year period. Although birth defects were rare, risk of any and specific types of birth defects was elevated in offspring of AYAs compared to offspring of age-matched women without cancer. This excess risk was apparent for nearly all cancer types and not explained by the disproportionate number of preterm births to AYAs. Findings can be used in clinical practice to inform reproductive counseling for AYAs after cancer diagnosis, as well as obstetric and maternal–fetal medicine care of their higher-risk pregnancies.
Evidence to inform lifestyle guidelines after cancer diagnosis is limited. Ergas and colleagues used g-computation to estimate the risk of all-cause mortality under several...