The widespread interest in male reproductive health (MRH), fueled by emerging evidence, such as the global decline in sperm counts, has intensified concerns about the status of MRH. Consequently, there is a pressing requirement for a strategic, systematic approach to identifying critical questions, collecting pertinent information, and utilizing these data to develop evidence-based strategies. The methods for addressing these questions and the pathways toward their answers will inevitably vary based on the variations in cultural, geopolitical, and health-related contexts. To address these issues, a conjoint ESHRE and Male Reproductive Health Initiative (MRHI) Campus workshop was convened.
The three objectives were: first, to assess the current state of MRH around the world; second, to identify some of the key gaps in knowledge; and, third, to examine how MRH stakeholders can collaboratively generate intelligent and effective paths forward.
Each expert reviewed and summarized the current literature that was subsequently used to provide a comprehensive overview of challenges related to MRH.
This narrative report is an overview of the data, opinions, and arguments presented during the workshop. A number of outcomes are presented and can be summarized by the following overarching themes: MRH is a serious global issue and there is a plethora of gaps in our understanding; there is a need for widespread international collaborative networks to undertake multidisciplinary research into fundamental issues, such as lifestyle/environmental exposure studies, and high-quality clinical trials; and there is an urgent requirement for effective strategies to educate young people and the general public to safeguard and improve MRH across diverse population demographics and resources.
This was a workshop where worldwide leading experts from a wide range of disciplines presented and discussed the evidence regarding challenges related to MRH. While each expert summarized the current literature and placed it in context, the data in a number of areas are limited and/or sparse. Equally, important areas for consideration may have been missed. Moreover, there are clear gaps in our knowledge base, which makes some conclusions necessarily speculative and warranting of further study.
Poor MRH is a global issue that suffers from low awareness among the public, patients, and heathcare professionals. Addressing this will require a coordinated multidisciplinary approach. Addressing the significant number of knowledge gaps will require policy makers prioritizing MRH and its funding.
The authors would like to extend their gratitude to ESHRE for providing financial support for the Budapest Campus Workshop, as well as to Microptic S.L. (Barcelona) for kindly sponsoring the workshop. P.B. is the Director of the not-for-profit organization Global Action on Men's Health and receives fees and expenses for his work, (which includes the preparation of this manuscript). Conflicts of interest: C.J.D.J., C.L.R.B., R.A.A., P.B., M.P.C., M.L.E., N.G., N.J., C.K., AAP, M.K.O., S.R.-H., M.H.V.-L.: ESHRE Campus Workshop 2022 (Travel support-personal). C.J.D.J.: Cambridge University Press (book royalties-personal). ESHRE Annual Meeting 2022 and Yale University Panel Meeting 2023 (Travel support-personal). C.L.R.B.: Ferring and IBSA (Lecture), RBMO editor (Honorarium to support travel, etc.), ExSeed and ExScentia (University of Dundee), Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (for research on contraception). M.P.C.: Previously received funding from pharmaceutical companies for health economic research. The funding was not in relation to this work and had no bearing on the contents of this work. No funding from other sources has been provided in relation to this work (funding was provided to his company Global Market Access Solutions). M.L.E.: Advisor to Ro, Doveras, Next, Hannah, Sandstone. C.K.: European Academy of Andrology (Past president UNPAID), S.K.: CEO of His Turn, a male fertility Diagnostic and Therapeutic company (No payments or profits to date). R.I.M.: www.healthymale.org.au (Australian Government funded not for profit in men's health sector (Employed as Medical Director 0.2 FET), Monash IVF Pty Ltd (Equity holder)). N.J.: Merck (consulting fees), Gedeon Richter (honoraria). S.R.-H.: ESHRE (Travel reimbursements). C.N.: LLC (Nursing educator); COMMIT (Core Outcomes Measures for Infertility Trials) Advisor, meeting attendee, and co-author; COMMA (Core Outcomes in Menopause) Meeting attendee, and co-author; International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) Delegate Letters and Sciences; ReproNovo, Advisory board; American Board of Urology Examiner; American Urological Association Journal subsection editor, committee member, guidelines co-author Ferring Scientific trial NexHand Chief Technology Officer, stock ownership Posterity Health Board member, stock ownership. A.P.: Economic and Social Research Council (A collaborator on research grant number ES/W001381/1). Member of an advisory committee for Merck Serono (November 2022), Member of an advisory board for Exceed Health, Speaker fees for educational events organized by Mealis Group; Chairman of the Cryos External Scientific Advisory Committee: All fees associated with this are paid to his former employer The University of Sheffield. Trustee of the Progress Educational Trust (Unpaid). M.K.O.: National Health and Medical Research Council and Australian Research Council (Funding for research of the topic of male fertility), Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Funding aimed at the development of male gamete-based contraception), Medical Research Future Fund (Funding aimed at defining the long-term consequences of male infertility). M.H.V.-L.: Department of Sexual and Reproductive Health and Research (SRH)/Human Reproduction Programme (HRP) Research Project Panel RP2/WHO Review Member; MRHI (Core Group Member), COMMIT (member), EGOI (Member); Human Reproduction (Associate Editor), Fertility and Sterility (Editor), AndroLATAM (Founder and Coordinator).
Human reproduction open. 2024 Apr 12*** epublish ***
Christopher J De Jonge, Christopher L R Barratt, R John Aitken, Richard A Anderson, Peter Baker, David Y L Chan, Mark P Connolly, Michael L Eisenberg, Nicolas Garrido, Niels Jørgensen, Sarah Kimmins, Csilla Krausz, Robert I McLachlan, Craig Niederberger, Moira K O'Bryan, Allan Pacey, Lærke Priskorn, Satu Rautakallio-Hokkanen, Gamal Serour, Joris A Veltman, Donna L Vogel, Mónica H Vazquez-Levin
Department of Urology, University of Minnesota Medical Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA., Division of Systems Medicine, School of Medicine, Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK., Discipline of Biological Sciences, School of Environment and Life Sciences, College of Engineering, Science and Environment, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, Australia., MRC Centre for Reproductive Health, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK., Global Action on Men's Health, UK., Assisted Reproductive Technology Unit, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, China., Health Economics, Global Market Access Solutions LLC, Mooresville, NC, USA., Department of Urology and Obstetrics & Gynecology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA., IVIRMA Global Research Alliance, IVI Foundation, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria La Fe (IIS La Fe), Valencia, Spain., Department of Growth and Reproduction and International Center for Research and Research Training in Endocrine Disruption of Male Reproduction and Child Health (EDMaRC), Rigshospitalet, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark., Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada., Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences, 'Mario Serio', University of Florence, University Hospital of Careggi (AOUC), Florence, Italy., Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia., Clarence C. Department of Urology, University of Illinois Chicago (UIC), College of Medicine, Department of Bioengineering, UIC College of Engineering, Chicago, IL, USA., School of BioSciences and Bio21 Institute, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia., Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Core Technology Facility, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK., Fertility Europe, Evere, Belgium., The International Islamic Center for Population Studies and Research, Al-Azhar University, Maadi, Cairo, Egypt., Faculty of Medical Sciences, Biosciences Institute, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK., School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA., Instituto de Biología y Medicina Experimental, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de Argentina-Fundación IBYME, Buenos Aires, Argentina.