When a person is diagnosed with cancer, he or she has doubts about whether he or she will be able to return to a "normal" life after surgery and other treatments. Most of the time, people have doubts about how their sexual life will be affected.
In this article, I tried to answer all your questions about sexual life after cancer.
Sex, intercourse and sexuality with a life partner or other partners are as important for cancer patients as for all people. Studies have shown that maintaining sexual life and emotional intimacy in cancer patients is an important factor in coping with the stress of cancer treatment.
However, undergoing cancer treatment can seriously affect the structure of people's sexual organs, sexual desires, sexual functions and body image. and patients may need counseling on this issue.
In this regard, patients are recommended to be open to the physician and other healthcare professionals they are treated with and to ask any questions they may have without hesitation. Other problems encountered during cancer treatment may prevent healthcare professionals from focusing on these issues.
Questions You Can Ask About Sexual Life After Cancer
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How does the treatment process affect my sexual life? Will it affect me?
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Is there any obstacle to me having sexual intercourse now? How early can I have sexual intercourse?
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Is there a type of intercourse that I should especially avoid in sexual life?
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Do I need contraception? Are birth control pills suitable to prevent pregnancy?
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Is there a risk of transmitting anything to my partner while having sex?
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What precautions should I take for a safe sexual life and how long should it last?
You should be able to ask your doctor any question that comes to your mind without hesitation. !
There is a lot of concern about sexuality after treatment, especially in women with cancers of the female reproductive system (uterine cancer/endometrium cancer, ovarian cancer), cervical cancer (cervix cancer) and breast cancer. count It is inevitable that there will be questions.
Since the uterus, ovaries, vagina and breast are organs specific to women and are under the direct influence of the female hormone estrogen, a cancer developing in one of these organs may also affect other systems and cause problems in the patient's sexual life. .
Uterine Cancer:After surgery to remove the uterus and ovaries (hysterectomy) in patients with uterine cancer, the amount of estrogen, the female hormone, may decrease, causing patients to enter menopause, and problems such as vaginal dryness may occur in these patients. It may come out. Likewise, sexual problems such as vaginal stenosis may occur in patients who receive radiation therapy after surgery.
Cervical cancer: For the treatment of cervical cancer, radical hysterectomy is the procedure for removing the uterus, ovaries and part of the vagina. Patients who have undergone a surgical removal procedure may experience orgasm problems due to nerve damage caused by this surgery. Again, patients who receive radiotherapy after surgery may have serious vaginal stenosis problems.
Ovarian cancer:In the treatment of ovarian cancer, the uterus and ovaries are routinely removed, and the resulting hormonal irregularity causes vaginal dryness in women and during sexual intercourse. may cause pain. In patients who have undergone extensive surgery called "Debulking" for advanced ovarian cancer, sometimes a part of the intestines may be externalized and patients may not know how sexual intercourse is possible in the presence of a colostomy or ileostomy.
Breast Cancer:The breast is a very important sexual organ for women and also a body symbol. Removing a breast in women with breast cancer may damage their sexual image and alienate them from sexuality. These patients should be counseled about the possibilities of prosthetics and other corrective surgeries.
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