Reproductive side effects of fluorouracil
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Copyright: © 2021 . This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
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Abstract
Chemotherapy has greatly extended the life span of cancer patients. However, the drugs used in chemotherapy often induce un-ignorable side effects. 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) has been widely used as a chemotherapeutic agent in the clinical treatment of various cancers and many studies showed its adverse effect on reproduction. Reproductive toxicity of 5-FU often associates with developmental block, malformation and ovarian damage in the females. In the males, 5-FU administration alters the morphology of sexual organs, the levels of reproductive endocrine hormones and the progresses of spermatogenesis, ultimately reducing sperm numbers. However, some studies suggested that the toxicity of 5-FU on reproduction is reversible and certain drugs used in combination with 5-FU during chemotherapy could protect reproductive systems from 5-FU both in females and males. Herein, we summarize and discuss the reproductive toxicity of 5-FU and provide a reference for future research and clinical treatment.