Freezer fault hits sperm bank

Patients banked the sperm before treatment

Frozen sperm from scores of patients kept at a Sheffield hospital may have been ruined after a fault allowed the samples to partially defrost.

The samples had been left at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield by men about to undergo treatment, mainly for forms of cancer, which would carry a risk of infertility.

Doctors at the hospital have written to 80 patients asking if they want their samples re-tested to ensure the sperm could still be used.

A seal on the container holding the samples failed, allowing the freezing agent liquid nitrogen to escape.

We deeply regret the anxiety this will cause to these patients who have banked with us

Professor Chris Welsh

The fault was detected within a few hours and the samples were transferred to another container.

Doctors say the risk of damage to the samples is small but the patients, who are nearly all from the South Yorkshire area, are being offered counselling and advice.

Patient samples which have already been tested so far have shown there was no affect on their sperm.

Worrying

Professor Chris Welsh, medical director of Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "This will be extremely worrying for people but we have a duty to inform them of the incident and to offer to test their samples.

"While initial testing has shown that viability has been preserved in all cases, we obviously want to be able to reassure everyone who was involved."

The hospital says there are several storage tanks at the unit and the majority of patients who have samples stored there have no cause for concern.

Professor Welsh said: "We have written directly to the patients involved and we have offered full support and counselling to them as well as gaining their permission to test their sample.

"We deeply regret the anxiety this will cause to these patients who have banked with us."