PSYCHOSEXUAL ADJUSTMENT AMONG WOMEN RECEIVING HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY FOR PREMATURE MENOPAUSE FOLLOWING CANCER-TREATMENT

As a result of their cancer treatment, many young cancer survivors exp erience primary ovarian failure and subsequent premature menopause. Th is study examined the psychosexual adjustment of women who experience premature menopause due to cancer therapy. Severity of menopausal symp toms, relationship adjustment, body image and psychological distress w ere also assessed. Participants were 34 women (mean age 36 years) rece iving hormone replacement therapy (HRT) for at least 3 months for earl y menopause following non-surgical treatment for cancer. Twenty-four h ealthy female peers with normal menses served as a comparison sample. Prematurely menopausal women demonstrated a higher prevalence of sexua l dysfunction (p<0.01), greater psychological distress (p<0.02) and mo re distressing menopausal symptoms (p<0.003) than the healthy women wi th normal menses. Twenty-eight women (82%) reported reduced sexual fun ctioning, with 13 women (38%) meeting DSM-IV criteria for one or more sexual dysfunctions. Prematurely menopausal cancer survivors with diag nosable sexual dysfunctions tended to have greater menopausal symptoms , which itself was associated with higher psychological distress (p<0. 001). Menopausal symptoms and relationship adjustment together were th e best predictors of sexual dysfunction (p<0.07). Further exploration is needed of the factors contributing to psychosexual dysfunction and the development of clinical interventions for the psychosexual needs o f women with cancer treatment-induced menopause.