ORLANDO – Therapeutic aids for sexual rehabilitation were not available at most major cancer centers, according to results of a structured telephone survey presented at the Cancer Survivorship Symposium.
Of the centers reached, 87% said they had no sexual aids available for men, and 72% said they had no such aids for women, said lead study author Sharon Bober, PhD, a psychologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts.
“I think the scarcity of all of these products really underscores the cultural taboos around sexual dysfunction, as did some of the discomfort of the staff responding to our calls,” Dr. Bober said in a press conference at the symposium, which was sponsored by the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Physicians, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Cancer treatment guidelines from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) recommend therapeutic aids for sexual health rehabilitation including vaginal dilators, moisturizers, and vacuum erection devices, Dr. Bober said.
Dr. Bober and her colleagues surveyed 25 NCI-designated Cancer Centers/National Comprehensive Cancer Network–member institutions about on-site availability of sexual aids and resources for cancer survivors.
After conducting internet searches and phone calls designed to identify potential sources of sexual aids at each center, study staff posed as relatives of patients and used a structured script to query cancer center staff about on-site availability of sexual aids.
Separate calls were conducted to query on availability of men and women’s sexual aids.
Of 23 centers that responded about men, 87% reported having no sexual aids, and of 22 centers that responded about women, 72% reported having no sexual aids, Dr. Bober reported at the symposium.
The lack of sexual aids was particularly notable given the wide availability of wigs, prosthetics, sunscreen, and other cancer care products at leading cancer centers, she added.
“Only one center of the 25 had an extensive list of products and resources for both men and women, which may well serve as a model when we think about the needs for cancer survivors in general,” said Dr. Bober.
These results suggest that leading cancer centers are not meeting the needs of cancer survivors in terms of recommended sexual therapeutic aids and informational resources, according to Timothy Gilligan, MD, an American Society of Clinical Oncology expert and member of the Cancer Survivorship news planning team.
“You sort of wonder where a cancer patient’s supposed to go to get this information if not at the Cancer Center,” said Dr. Gilligan, who moderated the press conference. “We’re really kind of leaving them shortchanged here, and the good news is I think we could easily do better if we just decide that we want to.”
The study was funded by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Dr. Bober reported research funding from Apex Neuro.
SOURCE: Bober S. et al. Cancer Survivorship Symposium Abstract #134