Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2024 Apr 1;143(4):499-514.
doi: 10.1097/AOG.0000000000005506. Epub 2024 Jan 11.

Sexual Health in Women Affected by Gynecologic or Breast Cancer

Katina Robison  1 , Amita Kulkarni, Don S Dizon
Affiliations
Review

Sexual Health in Women Affected by Gynecologic or Breast Cancer

Katina Robison et al. Obstet Gynecol. .

Abstract

Sexual health problems are prevalent among women affected by gynecologic or breast cancer. It is important to understand the effects cancer treatment can have on sexual health and to have the tools necessary to identify and treat sexual health problems. This Clinical Expert Series discusses practical methods for routinely screening for sexual dysfunction and reviews sexual health treatment options for women affected by cancer. We review the limitations of the current literature in addressing sexual health problems among sexually and gender minoritized communities. Finally, we discuss appropriate timing of referrals to sexual health experts, physical therapists, and sex therapists. Multiple resources available for both patients and clinicians are included.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Financial Disclosure : Don S. Dizon reports receiving payment from Astra Zeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, and Kronos Biotech. The other authors did not report any potential conflicts of interest.

References

    1. National Cancer Institute. Cancer statistics. Accessed June 14, 2023. https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/understanding/statistics
    1. Miller KD, Nogueira L, Mariotto AB, Rowland JH, Yabroff KR, Alfano CM, et al. Cancer treatment and survivorship statistics, 2019. CA Cancer J Clin 2019;69:363-85. doi: 10.3322/caac.21565 - DOI
    1. Bober SL, Varela VS. Sexuality in adult cancer survivors: challenges and intervention. J Clin Oncol 2012;30:3712–9. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2012.41.7915 - DOI
    1. Dizon DS, Suzin D, McIlvenna S. Sexual health as a survivorship issue for female cancer survivors. Oncologist 2014;19:202–10. doi: 10.1634/theoncologist.2013-0302 - DOI
    1. Jackson SE, Wardle J, Steptoe A, Fisher A. Sexuality after a cancer diagnosis: a population-based study. Cancer 2016;122:3883–91. doi: 10.1002/cncr.30263 - DOI

MeSH terms