Options for retaining fertility during cancer treatment

An Ohio woman is really celebrating her first Mother's Day - something that didn't seem possible 4 years ago.

When Brittney Rinella developed breast cancer at age 26, it looked like she'd have to sacrifice having a family for chemotherapy. Many cancer drugs are toxic to the ovaries.

Women can freeze eggs, embryos, or ovarian tissue until after treatment, but Brittney got hormone-blocking injections during chemo.

"They actually work to shut down the ovaries and make them less susceptible to the damage from chemotherapy," says Dr. Halle Moore, an oncologist at the Cleveland Clinic.

Later, when Brittney decided to start a family, she was able to conceive naturally.

She urges any young woman diagnosed with cancer to get a personalized fertility preservation plan.