SEXUALITY OF YOUNG-WOMEN SURVIVING LEUKEMIA

This study was designed to assess the sexuality of young women survivi ng acute leukaemia in childhood or early adolescence. Thirty of 31 sur vivors were compared with 50 healthy age matched. controls. Three meth ods were used: a self report questionnaire, a face to face interview c onducted by a psychiatrist, and a projective psychological test. The a ge at initiation of dating and sexual activity, the frequency of sexua l intercourse, and opinions on sexual behaviour were similar in the tw o groups. With regard to inner sexuality, however, the survivors diffe red significantly from the healthy controls. Their images of sexuality were more restrictive, and their attitudes, especially those concerni ng sexual pleasure, were more negative than those of the controls. Sex ual identity among the survivors was less often feminine and more ofte n infantile as compared with the controls. The findings obtained with the three methods of assessment were concordant.