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Intimacy & Sexuality
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center 833-983-1142
Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center at
Banner North Colorado Medical Center
1801 16th Street
Greeley, CO 80631
970-810-3894
Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center Radiation Oncology Clinic at
Banner McKee Medical Center
2000 Boise Ave. Loveland, CO 80538
970-810-3894
“Cancer treatment can cause a variety of sexual changes. Even though the causes may be different – surgery, chemotherapy, hormone treatment or radiation – the resulting changes are often similar. Some patients experience changes in all areas (desire, arousal, orgasm, resolution), but others experience none.”
“The most common sexual change for cancer patients is an overall loss of desire. For women, vaginal dryness and pain with sexual activity are frequent. Most women are still able to have an orgasm even if cancer treatment interferes with vaginal lubrication or involves removing some parts of the pelvic organs. It is common for patients to need more time or stimulation to reach orgasm.”
“You should know that the following common cancer treatment side effects may affect your desire for sex: Fatigue, Nausea, Vomiting, Diarrhea, Constipation, Hair loss, Weight changes, Scars, Sensitivity to tastes and smells. While medications are available to treat many of these symptoms, some of these same drugs can decrease sexual desire or make it harder to reach orgasm.”
“It is usually safe to have sex during cancer treatment unless your doctor tells you not to. Talk with your doctor before participating in sexual activities.”
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​Boulder Sex Therapy
Tara Galeano, MA, LPC, Certified Sex Therapist
2525 Arapahoe Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80304
tara@bouldersextherapy.com
303.544.1400
“An intimate partnership has physical and psychological components, both of which often take a hit when cancer enters the union. The prospect, and then the process, of treatments tend to alter the way the two people relate to each other. When the diagnosis is one of gynecologic or reproductive cancer for a woman, questions of sexual intimacy and function often color relationships, confuse partners, and raise concerns that other cancers might not.”
“With an estimated 83,000 women a year added to the roles of those battling gynecologic cancers and 300,000 women a year added to roles of those battling breast cancer, Sex and Cancer focuses on surviving and thriving—more than 70 percent of women with gynecologic cancers now survive!—and helps readers mitigate outcomes and overcome challenges of sexual dysfunction after a cancer diagnosis; reassess the priorities in an intimate relationship to support the patient’s struggle, healing, and libido; and learn to interact with the professionals tasked with saving lives and enhancing those areas affected by cancer diagnosis and treatment. Sex and Cancer features stories that illuminate insights about the impact of gynecologic and reproductive cancers on relationships. The stories give life to guidance that’s critical in shaping the effect that gynecologic cancer has on intimate relationships. And readers will find insight, comfort, and suggestions for addresses the questions about intimacy and sexual function that are often left unexpressed.”
https://www.amazon.com/Sex-Cancer-Intimacy-Diagnosis-Treatment/dp/1442275081
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Sex and Cancer (Intimacy, Romance, and Love after Diagnosis and Treatment)
Saketh R. Guntupalli, MD, and Maryann Karinch
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Sex and Cancer is a superb resource for both patients and clinicians alike. Dr. Guntupalli masterfully tackles the complex implications for love and intimacy that are too often overlooked and underdiscussed when it comes to cancer. Regaining intimacy accelerates the path to regaining health and this book is an insightful, powerful guide to doing exactly that. (Bill Frist, MD, former U.S. Senate Majority Leader)
Sex and cancer, two topics each of which are difficult to discuss by alone. Combine them and the anxiety they cause may be insurmountable. Finally, there is a resource that is compassionate and practical for both the person coping with cancer and their loved one. This is a book that you will immediately find useful and refer back to on your cancer journey. Sex and Cancer has my highest recommendation. (Stan Goldberg, PhD, author of Loving, Supporting, and Caring for the Cancer Patient)
A diagnosis of cancer changes everything. Not only does cancer affect the body, but the disease and the treatments for it can take a toll on our most intimate relationships. Kudos to Saketh Guntapalli for shining a light on this important topic–for explaining the physiological underpinnings of these effects and for providing solutions that are often surprisingly simple to implement. (Claudia Cornwall, PhD, author of Battling Melanoma: One Couple’s Struggle from Diagnosis to Cure and Catching Cancer: The Quest for its Viral and Bacterial Causes)
This book contains critical information, too often omitted from doctor-patient discussions. It will be exceedingly helpful to any woman with gynecological cancer. (Carol L. Goldstein, RN, PhD, and ovarian cancer survivor)
https://www.amazon.com/Sex-Cancer-Intimacy-Diagnosis-Treatment/dp/1442275081
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