The use of pornographic materials by adolescent male cancer patients when banking sperm in the UK: Legal and ethical dilemmas

Abstract

Increased awareness of the importance of fertility concerns to teenage cancer survivors is leading to growing numbers of male teenagers being offered sperm banking at the time of diagnosis. This is now extending to males diagnosed with other conditions where gonadotoxic agents are used in treatment. The storage of sperm in these circumstances is a challenging aspect of health care, given the complex issues and timescale involved. UK law has been enacted to protect legal minors from the potentially harmful effects of exposure to pornographic materials, yet there is reason to suppose that their use in this context could have therapeutic benefit in aiding successful masturbation. This paper uses material gained through consultation with the eleven largest UK sperm banks and 94 male teenage cancer survivors, to discuss the associated legal and ethical dilemmas, including those around the role of parents/carers. Findings suggest that there is variable practice in sperm banks, that almost a quarter of teenage males wanted access to soft porn when banking sperm, and half wanted to bring in their own materials. It concludes that there is an urgent need for any legal barriers to the therapeutic use of pornographic materials to be understood and examined.

Keywords:

• Cancer
• sperm banking
• teenagers