Ethical issues in ovarian transplantation and donation

The report of the successful replacement of ovarian tissue into a woman fro m whom it had been removed 2 years earlier raises several ethical questions about the use of techniques to prolong or exchange ovarian function (1). I f the reported technique proves to be safe and effective, it will help wome n who face oophorectomy, radiation, or chemotherapy for cancer to preserve ovarian function and thus reproduce. Although this advance is unlikely to g enerate the controversies that reproductive innovations such as surrogacy a nd cloning have, important ethical issues will arise if such techniques lea d to premenopausal ovarian storage by healthy women or ovary donation from cadavers or fetuses.