Psychosexual morbidity in women with ovarian cancer
Thanks to improved treatment, women with ovarian cancer are living longer. There is an increasing attention to the quality of life rather than a fixation on survival.
One of the priorities for women, usually not fully appreciated by medical attendants, is the pleasure of intimate sexual activity. There has been a dearth of information about what women experience after ovarian cancer treatment and a failure to appreciate the inevitable changes that occur.
This paper from the UK is revelatory; the study is a retrospective analysis of all available literature. The findings are that up to 65% of women before surgery were sexually active. After surgery 75% reported adverse effect, the reasons were both physical and psychological with pain and loss of pleasure.
The paper is very important and I would encourage full study of the detail. The loss of body image, change in interpersonal relationships from partner to carer, together with the disability of surgery are important but misunderstood consequences of ovarian cancer care.
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