Summary
While sexual health and intimacy cause major concerns for breast cancer patients, they often go unaddressed.
“Among women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, much like those who have been diagnosed with cancer in general, this is one of the most under-recognized concerns they have,” noted Don S. Dizon, MD, Director of Women's Cancers, Lifespan Cancer Institute. “However, very few people are accessing resources.”
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Original Article
Understanding Sexual Health & Intimacy Among Breast Cancer Patients
Oncology Times
By Catlin Nalley
While sexual health and intimacy cause major concerns for breast cancer patients, they often go unaddressed.
“Among women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, much like those who have been diagnosed with cancer in general, this is one of the most under-recognized concerns they have,” noted Don S. Dizon, MD, Director of Women's Cancers, Lifespan Cancer Institute. “However, very few people are accessing resources.”
This is detrimental because, according to Dizon, “when left unaddressed, these issues can have serious unintended consequences in both the psychological as well as the social realms of people's lives.
“My goal is not to encourage everyone to become ‘sexual health experts,’” he explained. “I want to ensure that patients know that the door is indeed open at every center across the country to discuss and also problem solve the issues that women and men may be facing after breast cancer.”
During his session at the Miami Breast Cancer Conference, “Sexual Health and Intimacy in Breast Cancer,” Dizon discussed how health care providers could better serve their patients and make sure they have the resources they need to address these issues.
Improving Practice Approaches
Successfully addressing sexual heath and intimacy with cancer patients depends on having the resources in place to provide the necessary support.
“The nice thing about the work that we do in sexual health is that you don't need to be a physician to spearhead the issue,” Dizon explained. “All it takes is someone within a cancer center or a breast health program who is interested in working on these issues with our patients and taking that extra time to learn about the field of sexual health and become the resource.
“What I've learned when we set up sexual health programs is that, if the resource is available, providers are more willing to ask about the issue,” he continued. “It is very difficult to ask about an issue if you don't know where your resources are going to be. Therefore, it is important to invest in the personnel to help patients navigate these issues.”
For those providers who want to develop a sexual health program at their institution, they should start by identifying who will be the champion, according to Dizon. There is a plethora of resources designed to provide the basics on these topics, including conferences and training courses.
“We need people who are first responders for these kinds of concerns to operate within the boundary of the group practice or center to provide patients with basic information, but to also help them understand that these issues are common and that they are not alone,” Dizon emphasized.
What does Dizon hope attendees took away from the session? “I want folks to understand that sexual health isn't Pandora's box,” he noted. “They're not unleashing this whole host of information that patients are either not ready or not willing to hear about.
“Patients want to know, and the literature supports that they want to be able to discuss what matters to them,” Dizon explained. “We can help open that door by just simply asking a few very simple questions. [Health care teams] should be able to offer resources across the country, so that women and men who would like to explore it have the ability to do so.”
Dizon also appreciates that the Miami Breast Cancer Conference included this session in their program. “These are the issues that physicians have to champion,” he concluded.
Catlin Nalley is a contributing writer.