A new study has shown that receiving bone marrow or blood stem cell transplants can damage the sexual wellness and wellbeing of cancer patients. This type of transplant is on the increase, as it is becoming a more and more effective way to treat patients who are suffering from various types of blood cancer such as lymphoma, myeloma and leukaemia. Researchers say that whilst this used to be a really risky procedure, the survival rates for those who undergo stem cell transplants are on the increase. There is now enough of a survival rate for people to start to look at what the quality of life is like for those who have undergone the treatment, and their sexual health is part of this.
Up until now, transplant teams will not have had to have a conversation with a potential patient about how the treatment could have an impact on their sexual wellness, even after they have recovered, but the recent research shows that this is very much a conversation that should be had. Doctors and patients will now have to talk about the realities of sexual dysfunction, and put patients in touch with specialists who may be able to help them deal with the problems that may occur.
The study looked at a group that included 152 men and 125 women who were an average of 48 years old, all of whom underwent stem cell transplant surgery between 2001 and 2005. The group was followed for a period of three years. Before the surgery, the men were asked if they were sexually active, and the percentage fell from 64 percent to 54 percent after the surgery. Interestingly, the women who were asked the same question revealed and increase in sexual activity, with the sexually active participants rising from 37 percent to 52 percent.