Side effects of cancer drugs
Doctors use many different types of drugs to treat cancer. Some drugs can cause changes to your sex life. Some might stop you from being able to become pregnant in the future. This is called infertility.
Not being able to have a child in future can be particularly difficult to cope with if you were planning to do so. Worries about the effect of a cancer drug on your sex life can affect your quality of life.
For at least the first two years after you had finished treatment, doctors can't say for sure whether you will be infertile or not. This is because the sex organs might not work for a while.
Some chemotherapy drugs can cause changes to , including . How much will depend on:
the type of drug, for example, some alkylating drugs like cyclophosphamide are more likely to cause infertility
the total amount of the drug you have had over time (cumulative dose)
Read about the effects of chemotherapy treatment on fertility
Some hormone therapies for cancer interfere with:
the menstrual cycle in women
the production of sperm in men
This will change fertility. Fertility usually comes back once you have finished treatment. There is some risk that long-term use can cause permanent changes in men.
There is not enough research yet to know how the following treatments can cause changes to fertility:
targeted cancer drugs
immunotherapies
bisphosphonates
Many other factors might also play a role in fertility after cancer treatment. These are:
your type and stage of cancer
whether you had radiotherapy or surgery to your sexual organs
your age
your sex
genetic factors
whether you have an underactive thyroid after cancer treatment
Look up your cancer drugs to see if they might affect sex and fertility
Cancer drugs can lower some women’s sex drive for a while. This might be due to:
tiredness
hormone changes
other side effects
Your sex drive will usually return to normal sometime after the treatment ends.
Some chemotherapy drugs can lower the amount of hormones your ovaries make. This may cause early menopause for some women.
Read about early menopause due to chemotherapy
Some hormone therapies can also cause early menopause. You might get menopausal symptoms even if you have already had your menopause.
Read about the side effects of hormone therapies for women
Targeted cancer drugs, immunotherapies and bisphosphonates do not seem to cause early menopause or affect your sex life.
Some types of chemotherapy can cause early menopause. This can stop you from being able to become pregnant in the future. Talk to your doctor about this before your treatment.
It is sometimes possible to store eggs or embryos before treatment.
Find out more about women’s fertility and chemotherapy
There is not enough research yet to know how targeted cancer drugs, immunotherapies and bisphosphonates affect fertility.
Hormone therapies do not usually cause permanent infertility.
Some cancer drugs can lower some men’s sex drive for a while due to tiredness or other side effects. Your sex drive will usually return to normal after the treatment ends.
Some types of chemotherapy reduce the amount of male hormones (testosterone) made by the testes. This also usually goes back to normal sometime after the treatment ends.
Some men with prostate cancer have treatment with hormone therapies to lower testosterone levels. Hormone therapies can reduce your sex drive. You might not be able to get or keep an erection. You may also get breast swelling and tenderness.
Read about the side effects of hormone therapies for men
Targeted cancer drugs, immunotherapies and bisphosphonates do not seem to cause changes to your sex life.
Some types of chemotherapy can stop you from being able to father a child in the future. Talk to your doctor about this. It is sometimes possible to collect and store sperm before treatment.
Find out more about men's fertility and chemotherapy
There is not enough research yet to know how targeted cancer drugs, immunotherapies, and bisphosphonates can cause changes to fertility.
Hormone therapies do not usually cause permanent infertility. When used long-term, there is some risk that this may happen.
Last reviewed: 12 Jun 2023
Next review due: 12 Jun 2026
Cancer and its treatments can affect sex and sexuality. Get information and support for people with cancer, partners and single people.
Cancer drugs have side effects and these can vary from person to person. But there are things that you can do to help you cope.
Chemotherapy is a standard treatment for some types of cancer. It uses anti cancer drugs to destroy cancer cells.
Hormone therapy blocks or lowers the amount of hormones in the body to stop or slow down the growth of cancer.
Targeted cancer drugs work by ‘targeting’ the differences that help a cancer cell to survive and grow. There are many different types of targeted drugs.
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