Sexual health and intimacy are important for overall well-being.
- It is usually safe to be intimate in many ways, including having sexual intercourse, during treatment for ovarian cancer. There may be a waiting period after some surgeries.
- Treatment, especially surgery, may put a woman in sudden, early menopause, which can affect sexual health.
- How soon you can have intercourse after surgery depends on the type of surgery you had. This is one of the questions to ask your surgeon during your post-op visit.
- Some of the sexual issues women struggle with are psychological.
It’s generally safe for patients undergoing treatment for ovarian cancer to be intimate in many forms, including having sex. After surgery, "we do expect women, and ask women, to wait a particular amount of time until it is safe internally to resume sexual intercourse," Dr. Dedmond says. How long they have to wait depends on the type of surgery they've had, "whether it's an early stage cancer, a young woman having surgery for cancer, or a more mature woman having surgery for extensive disease." Some questions she suggests asking your surgeon during your post-op visit:
- What exactly was done?
- How does this change my anatomy?
- How will this affect my ability to enjoy sexual intercourse and other forms of intimacy?
If issues arise, outside resources such as sexual health counseling, which may include both the patient and the partner, can help with the process of talking about it and addressing it.
"The healing process after surgery may delay some intimacy and may change some of the feelings that both partners experience during intimate moments," Dedmond says. Most doctors would agree that patience is key to a successful sexual recovery. "I believe most patients probably are able to enjoy a healthy sexual life," one doctor told SurvivorNet. "But I think sometimes we have to help them to get there."
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