Skip to main content
. 2022 May 16;31(5):665–674. doi: 10.1089/jwh.2021.0176

Table 3.

Demographic Characteristics of Cancer Survivors by Whether or Not They Reported an Unplanned Pregnancy After Cancer Diagnosis Among Survivors Who Had Not Had a Hysterectomy, Bilateral Oophorectomy, Tubal Ligation, or Endometrial Ablation Before Cancer Diagnosis with Unadjusted and Adjusted Hazard Ratios for Factors Associated with Unplanned Pregnancy After Cancer

  At least one unplanned pregnancy after cancer diagnosis (n = 185)
 No unplanned pregnancies after cancer diagnosis (n = 885)
  
n % n % HR 95% CI aHRa 95% CI
Demographics
Age at interview (years)         1.49 0.70–3.16    
 22–28 8 4.3 41 4.6 — —
 29–35 60 32.4 243 27.5 1.64 1.12–2.40 — –
 36–40 64 34.6 331 37.4 1.23 0.85–1.78 — –
 41–45 53 28.7 270 30.5 Referent   — —
Race
 White 113 61.8 636 72.3 Referent   — —
 Black 59 32.2 208 23.7 1.55 1.13–2.12 — —
 Otherb 11 6.0 35 4.0 1.66 0.89–3.08 — —
Level of education
 High school or less 14 7.6 49 5.5 Referent   Referent  
 Some college 45 24.3 219 24.8 0.83 0.46–1.51 0.78 0.42–1.46
 College graduate 78 42.1 327 37.0 0.89 0.50–1.57 0.93 0.51–1.67
 Some grad school or grad degree 48 26.0 289 32.7 0.65 0.36–1.17 0.66 0.36–1.22
Location of residence at interview
 Metropolitan area 167 90.3 813 92.0 Referent   — —
 Nonmetropolitan area 18 9.7 71 8.0 1.40 0.86–2.28 — —
Relationship status at interview
 Married, living with a partner, or in a committed relationship 149 80.5 668 75.7 Referent   Referent  
 Single 35 18.9 205 23.2 0.78 0.54–1.12 0.77 0.53–1.11
 Otherc,d 1 0.5 10 1.1 — — — —
Marital status at diagnosis
 Married 118 63.8 587 66.3 1.05 0.78–1.42 1.19 0.87–1.61
 Not married 67 36.2 298 33.7 Referent   Referent  
Income
 Greater than $50,000 113 61.4 598 68.3 Referent   Referent  
 $50,000 or less 71 38.6 278 31.7 1.33 0.99–1.79 1.15 0.83–1.59
Health insurance status at interview
 Insured 162 87.6 809 91.4 Referent   Referent  
 No insurance 23 12.4 76 8.6 1.38 0.89–2.13 1.30 0.83–2.02
Reproductive outcomes
Had at least one precancer pregnancy
 Yes 96 51.9 469 53.0 1.15 0.86–1.54 1.33 0.97–1.83
 No 89 48.1 416 47.0 Referent   Referent  
Parity at diagnosis                
 Had at least one child 82 44.3 397 44.9 1.19 0.89–1.59 1.44 1.05–1.97
 Had no children 103 55.7 488 55.1 Referent   Referent  
Had an abortion before diagnosis
 Yes 19 10.3 112 12.7 0.86 0.53–1.38 0.77 0.47–1.26
 No 166 89.7 773 87.3 Referent   Referent  
Had an unplanned pregnancy before diagnosis
 Yes 75 40.5 313 35.4 1.33 0.99–1.79 1.32 0.96–1.81
 No 110 59.5 572 64.6 Referent   Referent  
Ever diagnosed with an STI
 Yes 66 35.7 254 28.7 1.32 0.98–1.78 1.26 0.93–1.71
 No 119 64.3 631 71.3 Referent   Referent  
Ever reported a period of infertilitye
 Yes 78 42.6 316 37.3 1.21 0.90–1.62 1.23 0.92–1.65
 No 105 57.4 531 62.7 Referent   Referent  
Ever used contraceptionf
 Yes 151 81.6 715 80.8 Referent   Referent  
 No 34 18.4 170 19.2 0.98 0.68–1.43 0.93 0.63–1.38
Cancer and treatment
Age at diagnosis
 Under 30 years 122 66.0 396 44.7 1.79 1.32–2.44 — —
 30 years or older 63 34.0 489 55.3 Referent   — —
Time since diagnosis
 0–4 years 24 13.0 194 21.9 — — — —
 5–7 years 51 27.6 273 30.9 — — — —
 8–10 years 38 20.5 200 22.6 — — — —
 11+ years 72 38.9 218 24.6 — — — —
Cancer diagnosis
 Breast 49 26.5 310 35.0 0.92 0.65–1.32 1.02 0.70–1.51
 Hematological 42 22.7 126 14.2 1.43 0.98–2.07 1.31 0.90–1.92
 Reproductive 12 6.5 69 7.8 1.23 0.67–2.26 1.22 0.65–2.29
 Other 82 44.3 380 42.9 Referent   Referent  
Cancer treatment
Surgery
 Yes 139 75.1 715 80.8 0.82 0.59–1.15 1.06 0.68–1.64
 No 46 24.9 170 19.2 Referent   Referent  
Radiation
 Yes 98 53.0 416 47.0 1.19 0.89–1.59 1.22 0.90–1.65
 No 87 47.0 469 53.0 Referent   Referent  
Chemotherapy                
 Yes 108 58.4 507 57.3 1.13 0.84–1.51 1.08 0.74–1.58
 No 77 41.6 378 42.7 Referent   Referent  
Received fertility counseling
 Yes 125 67.6 536 60.6 1.40 1.03–1.90 1.41 1.04–1.92
 No 60 32.4 349 39.4 Referent   Referent  
Pursued fertility preservationd,g
 Yes 2 1.1 20 2.2 — — — —
 No 184 98.9 882 97.8 — — — —
Menses after diagnosisd,h
 Had menses 182 98.4 799 90.3 — — — —
 Menses absent 3 1.6 86 9.7 — — — —
Other health information
Had a hysterectomy or bilateral oophorectomy by interview
 Yes 14 7.6 156 17.6 0.68 0.39–1.18 0.74 0.42–1.31
 No 171 92.4 729 82.4 Referent   Referent  
BMIi
 Underweightd 2 1.1 13 1.5 — — — —
 Normal weight 90 48.7 408 46.4 Referent   — —
 Overweight 45 24.3 225 25.6 0.93 0.65–1.33 — —
 Obese 48 26.0 234 26.6 1.02 0.72–1.45 — —
Chronic medical conditionj
 Yes 123 66.5 565 63.8 1.14 0.84–1.54 1.15 0.84–1.56
 No 62 33.5 320 36.2 Referent   Referent  
Ever identified as a regular smoker
 Yes 41 22.2 210 23.7 0.89 0.63–1.26 0.92 0.64–1.32
 No 144 77.8 675 76.3 Referent   Referent  
Ever identified as a weekly drinker
 Yes 72 38.9 352 39.8 0.89 0.66–1.20 0.96 0.70–1.30
 No 113 61.1 533 60.2 Referent   Referent  
a

Models for age at diagnosis, age at the interview, race, location of residence, and BMI are unadjusted. Models for relationship status at the time of the interview and chronic medical condition are adjusted for age at time of interview. Model for relationship status at the time of diagnosis is adjusted for age at diagnosis. Models for income, insurance status, history of STI, ever drinker, and ever smoker are adjusted for age at interview and race. Models for level of education, having an abortion before diagnosis, receiving fertility counseling, having an unplanned pregnancy before cancer diagnosis, having at least one pregnancy before cancer, having at least one child before cancer, and cancer diagnosis are adjusted for age at diagnosis and race. Model for ever having a period of infertility is adjusted for age at diagnosis and age at the interview. Model for use of contraception is adjusted for age at interview, race, parity at cancer diagnosis, and receipt of fertility counseling. Model for receipt of cancer treatment (surgery, chemotherapy, radiation) is adjusted for cancer type. Model for hysterectomy or oophorectomy by the time of the interview is adjusted for age at interview and cancer type.

b

Race category “other” includes: American Indian, Alaskan Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander

c

Relationship category “other” was reserved for women who felt that the other listed options did not accurately reflect their relationship status

d

HRs were suppressed where cell sizes had fewer than five observations.

e

A period of infertility was defined as a 12-month period having regular (at least three times per month) unprotected intercourse with a male partner without getting pregnant.

f

Contraception included report of use of a hormone or copper intrauterine device, oral contraceptives (combined or progesterone only), patches, vaginal ring, Depo Provera, or the subdermal implant.

g

Fertility preservation included those who reported having oocytes retrieved to freeze oocytes or embryos.

h

Menstrual status assessed by participant's response to the questions, “Did your menstrual periods stop during your cancer treatment?” and “For how long did your period stop?” Women who reported their period stopping and never returning are classified as having absent menses.

i

BMI calculated using self-reported weight in pounds and self-reported height in inches. Weight was converted to kilograms (kg). Height was converted to meters (m). The formula kg/m2 was used to calculate BMI. Underweight: BMI <18.5; Normal weight: 18.5 ≤ BMI <25; Overweight: 25 ≤ BMI <30; Obese: BMI ≥30.

j

Chronic medical conditions included hypertension, congestive heart failure, cardiomyopathy, previous myocardial infarction, diabetes, depression, osteoporosis or osteopenia, eating disorders, rheumatologic conditions, and thyroid disorders.

95% CI, 95% confidence interval; aHR, adjusted hazard ratio; HR, hazard ratio; STI, sexually transmitted infection.