Dr. Mark Denker Helps Overcomer Celebrate His 1st Father's Day

Frozen Sperm and ICSI Lead to First-Time IVF Success for Florida Couple

Boca Raton, Fla. – June 11, 2014 – Christopher Juried was only 23 when he was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma B-Mantle cell. At the time, he was the youngest man in the world with the rare form of cancer. Aggressive treatment would eventually save his life, but destroy his fertility. Dr. Mark Denker and Palm Beach Fertility Center restored hope for Chris and his wife Teresa, whose endometriosis would further complicate conception.

“Fortunately, Chris’ oncologists advised him to bank his sperm prior to undergoing the high-dose chemotherapy, total body irradiation and allogeneic stem cell transplant treatments,” says Dr. Denker, a reproductive endocrinologist in a Boca Raton fertility center.

“When I found out I had cancer, I went to four different doctors, and three-fourths of them said I wouldn’t make it past five years,” Chris says, recalling the day he successfully completed treatment and moved to Florida.

In Medical Remission, Chris Meets His Match in Florida

With his lymphoma in remission, Chris was diagnosed with skin cancer and melanoma. Immunosuppressant therapy and multiple surgeries made it impossible for Chris to leave the house. It was during this time that Chris met Teresa on Match.com, and six months later they were married in his mother’s living room. The groom, still in recovery, was not strong enough to stand during the ceremony.

“Doctors told us there was a slight chance that we could get pregnant on our own, so we tried with no success over three or four years,” Teresa says. “After two attempts at IUI, I learned that I had endometriosis.”

Teresa says she regrets pursuing IUI, and believes that her endometriosis may have impacted her chances for getting pregnant. At this point the couple decided to move on to a fertility specialist.

Partnering with Dr. Mark Denker and Palm Beach Fertility Center

“I did a lot of research,” says the Davie/Ft. Lauderdale area resident. “Dr. Denker’s name kept coming up on online searches. When we finally met Dr. Denker, he took us in and made us feel like people, not numbers. We both loved him.”

Dr. Denker recommended a fertility treatment cycle that would incorporate in vitro fertilization, combining Chris’ frozen sperm with Teresa’s retrieved eggs in a petri dish in the IVF lab. The advanced services that likely led to the successful outcome included IVF lab techniques called intracytoplasmic sperm injection, or ICSI, and assisted hatching.

“Chris and Teresa had already overcome great odds, beating cancer and finding each other. Their IVF treatment cycle was carefully planned to achieve the best quality eggs that we could get, because we knew that this was a challenging case. We used state of the art culture media and incubators to give the best embryo quality possible, and it worked.” added Dr. Denker.

“This was the third time we were trying to get pregnant [after the first two IUI attempts with another fertility center], and we decided this is it,” Teresa said. “It was an emotional time. Chris was the last man to carry his family name.”

The couple found out at Hanukah that IVF at Palm Beach Fertility Center was a success.

The new mom’s advice to anyone struggling with infertility: “I will tell any couple not to give up. I know it’s hard—infertility takes you in every direction you can imagine. If we hadn’t taken the next step, we wouldn’t have the beautiful son that we do.”

Teresa has already referred two friends to Dr. Denker, and they each had successful fertility treatment outcomes as well.

Chris and Teresa, married 10 years, will celebrate their first Father’s Day with their new baby, Michael Christopher, now 10 months old.

Teresa asked her husband what he’d like to do for Father’s Day and he simply wants to spend time with Michael, his miracle baby.

About Palm Beach Fertility Center

For 20 years, Dr. Mark Denker has provided Palm Beach and Boca Raton residents with top-quality infertility services. We offer state-of-the-art facilities, advanced fertility treatment and a supportive team to help patients as they pursue their goals of parenthood. For more information about the clinic, please visit http://www.palmbeachfertility.com.