Difficult legacy in a close relationship. Sexual satisfaction, relationship satisfaction, and body image in patients with BRCA mutation after prophylactic mastectomy and/or adnexectomy.

Sylwia Michałowska

doi:10.12740/app/146346

Abstract

Aim of the studyContinuous scientific progress and the development of genetics have opened up new possibilities in the field of cancer prevention by detecting DNA mutations that increase oncological risk. In the case of high risk, special recommendations are addressed to the carriers of gene mutations and they concern, inter alia, surgical prophylactic procedures - mastectomy and adnexectomy. The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between sexual satisfaction, partner satisfaction and body assessment in women with the BRCA mutation depending on the preventive surgery performed by them that reduce cancer risk.Subject or material and methodsThe study involved 310 women with the BRCA genetic mutation and were healthy at the time of the study. The study lasted 7 months and the variables were measured using the Sexual Satisfaction Sale for Women (SSS WR15), the Matched Marriage Questionnaire (KDM-2), the Body Esteem Scale (BES) and the questionnaire enabling the collection of sociodemographic data and information related to cancer history and preventive operations performed.ResultsThe conducted analysis showed significant differences between the patients depending on the preventive surgery performed in terms of sexual attractiveness, weight control and all dimensions of partner and sexual satisfaction.DiscussionThe results obtained are consistent with the results of studies conducted in other countries.ConclusionsIt has been proven that there are relationships between body assessment and sexual satisfaction as well as between body assessment and relationship satisfaction, and that there are differences in these areas between the groups of women who performed preventive mastectomy, adnexectomy, both procedures or none.

Highlights

The specificity of neoplastic disease, classified as a chronic disease posing a threat to the patient’s life, has been the subject of analyzes and scientific research for many years
In the Polish population, significant genetic susceptibility to breast / ovarian cancer is usually associated with mutations in the BRCA1, CHEK2, PALB2, BRCA2, RECQL genes and is usually manifested in hereditary breast-ovarian cancer (HBOC), hereditary breast cancer – site specific (HBC-ss) and hereditary ovarian cancer (HOC) [1]
The most common causes of HBOC, HBC-ss, and HOC syndromes include constitutional mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, which have been associated with an increased lifecycle cancer incidence rate of 35% to 85% for breast cancer [2] and from 16% to 60% for ovarian cancer [3]

Summary

Introduction

The specificity of neoplastic disease, classified as a chronic disease posing a threat to the patient’s life, has been the subject of analyzes and scientific research for many years. The dynamic development of medicine, the increase in knowledge in the field of clinical genetics, oncology and psycho-oncology allowed for the broadening of research perspectives, and contributed to the increase in social awareness of possible actions to reduce cancer risk. In the Polish population, significant genetic susceptibility to breast / ovarian cancer is usually associated with mutations in the BRCA1, CHEK2, PALB2, BRCA2, RECQL genes and is usually manifested in hereditary breast-ovarian cancer (HBOC), hereditary breast cancer – site specific (HBC-ss) and hereditary ovarian cancer (HOC) [1]. The most common causes of HBOC, HBC-ss, and HOC syndromes include constitutional mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, which have been associated with an increased lifecycle cancer incidence rate of 35% to 85% for breast cancer [2] and from 16% to 60% for ovarian cancer [3]. We may speak of the so-called predisposition to inherit cancer

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