SURVIVING GYNECOLOGIC CANCER AND COPING WITH SEXUAL MORBIDITY - AN INTERNATIONAL PROBLEM

A review of the international literature reveals that significant sexu al morbidity occurs for gynecologic cancer survivors, and that there h as been little reduction in either the incidence or the severity of pr oblems over the last 50 years available to research. In fact, prospect ive data from the last 10 years highlight the discrepancy in sexual ac tivity and sexual responsiveness and the higher frequency of sexual dy sfunctions for patients who have been treated for gyneclogic cancer in comparison to age-matched healthy counterparts. We conclude with an i nternational summary and discuss specific research directions for dise ase sites. We urge international efforts to address quality of life co ncerns of gynecologic cancer survivors.