Nahata Lab
The Nahata Lab is focused on improving reproductive and psychosocial outcomes in pediatric populations at risk for infertility. Its goal is to help families make optimal decisions regarding fertility preservation in order to meet future parenthood goals.
Lines of Research
Most research examining fertility preservation (FP) decisions has focused on females despite a higher prevalence of cancer and treatment-related infertility in males. Many studies examining FP predictors have been conducted years after therapy and are subject to recall bias. Little is known about adolescents’ and young adults’ decision quality (satisfaction/regret) soon after FP decisions are made. Although caregivers make most healthcare decisions for their child even into adolescence and young adulthood, family factors including parent-child communication about FP, have not been examined.
Fertility Preservation Discussions and Decisions (FP-DAD)
This randomized clinical trial will test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a novel family-centered, psychoeducational intervention, the Family-centered Adolescent Sperm banking Tool (FAST), with known and newly identified factors to improve fertility preservation uptake, decision quality, and family communication among male adolescents and young adults newly diagnosed with cancer.
Web-based FAST
In our past studies, we developed the FAST and tested it prospectively among families of adolescent males newly diagnosed with cancer. We found that the FAST prompted deeper thinking and facilitated family communication about parenthood goals and banking, and that sperm banking rates increased significantly. Given feasibility and equity considerations (i.e., short time frame, variety of settings in which fertility counseling is delivered), the aim of this study is to adapt the FAST to a web-based tool that can be accessed in inpatient/outpatient/non-clinical settings, identify implementation strategies for high and low-resourced settings, and test these in a three-site pilot study.
Reproductive health in people with Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is understudied despite the many implications of the disease and its treatments on fertility and family planning. Additionally, educational resources about SCD and reproductive health remain limited. It is paramount that researchers learn more about reproductive health in relation to SCD and develop educational materials, as most people with SCD desire biological parenthood yet are unaware of the reproductive health implications of SCD and its treatments.
FUTURES
We developed a community-based, health-literacy informed education program, entitled FUTURES, to educate adolescent and young adult males with SCD and their caregivers about the fertility implications of their disease and treatments and the role of fertility testing (semen analysis) in learning more about their fertility status. In collaboration with a community advisory board, we recently revised the program to improve feasibility, efficacy, and acceptability. Upcoming studies will continue to test the FUTURES program and the feasibility of fertility testing in adolescent males with SCD.
Examining Reproductive Knowledge and Outcomes Among Adults with Sickle Cell Disease
Despite recent research regarding the fertility outcomes associated with SCD, not much is known about the reproductive experiences of adults with SCD. This study will examine reproductive health knowledge, goals, behaviors, and outcomes among adults with sickle cell disease.
Inside the Nahata Lab
- Congrats to Dr. Nahata on her R01 funding through NIH!
- Dr. Nahata received an R01 in September 2023 from the National Institutes of Health/National Cancer Institute to study adaptation and implementation of a web-based family centered adolescent sperm banking decision tool for adolescent males with cancer. The project aims to make the Family-centered Adolescent Sperm banking Tool (FAST) easily accessed on the web and implemented at a wide variety of high and low-resourced settings to facilitate banking decisions among adolescent males with cancer.
- Dr. Nahata was selected as the Abigail Wexner Research Institute featured researcher in August 2021. Click here to learn more about Dr. Nahata and her work in the Center for Biobehavioral Health.
Featured Publications
- Experiences and outcomes of fertility testing in male adolescents with sickle cell disease
- Primary care use and depression screening among young adults with sickle cell disease during their final year of pediatric hematology care
- Clinicians' perspectives on barriers and facilitators to sperm banking in adolescent males with cancer: a mixed-methods study
- Contraception, pregnancy, and STI counseling and care among transitioning young adults with sickle cell disease
- FUTURES: efficacy and acceptability of a novel reproductive health education program for adolescent males with sickle cell disease
- Study protocol for FUTURES: Testing a web-based reproductive health education program for adolescent and young adult males with sickle cell disease
- Comment on: Infertility and treatment-seeking practices among females and males with sickle cell disease in the Sickle Cell Disease Implementation Consortium registry
- Addressing fertility in adolescent boys with sickle cell disease: emerging clinical and ethical dilemmas
Lab Staff
Leena Nahata, MD
Principal Investigator
Leena Nahata, MD, is a board-certified pediatric endocrinologist, Associate Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and founder and medical director of the Fertility and Reproductive Health Program at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. As an NIH-funded Principal Investigator in the Center for Biobehavioral Health at the Abigail Wexner Research Institute, she is leading and collaborating on several clinical research studies focused on improving reproductive and psychosocial outcomes in pediatric populations at risk for infertility.
Charleen Theroux
Clinical Research Coordinator II
Charleen Theroux is a clinical research coordinator II working with Dr. Nahata in the Center for Biobehavioral Health. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and education and has completed graduate-level coursework in public health at the University of Southern California. Her interests are focused on public health data science and biostatistics particularly as tools to improve outcomes among children with chronic medical conditions.
Megan Griffith
Clinical Research Coordinator I
Megan Griffith is a clinical research coordinator working with Dr. Nahata in the Center for Biobehavioral Health. She graduated from Case Western Reserve University in 2023 with bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Cognitive Science. As an undergraduate student, Megan worked as a research assistant for the Affect and Play lab and as a lead counselor at the Cleveland Clinic's Summer Treatment Program. Her research interests include culturally adapted interventions, neurodevelopmental disorders, and community engagement in research in the context of healthcare or chronically ill populations. Megan's long-term goal is to pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology, with a focus in pediatric psychology.
Tanvi Karkare
Clinical Research Coordinator I
Tanvi Karkare is a clinical research coordinator I working with Dr. Nahata in the Center for Biobehavioral Health. She graduated from Michigan State University in 2024 with a degree in cognitive and computational neuroscience. As an undergraduate student, Tanvi worked as a research assistant for the Prenatal Stress Study and the Visual Neuroscience Lab, a mentor in the YOUR(in)CHARJ research fellowship, and worked as an undergraduate junior counselor in Confident Kids Camp for children with selective mutism in the summer. Her research interests include closing gaps in healthcare inequities, specifically in the realm of developmental psychobiology. Tanvi's long-term goal is to pursue a doctorate in clinical psychology, with a focus in mental healthcare and treatment inequities for under-resourced children.
