title: Sexuality: a quality-of-life issue for cancer survivors.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To provide an overview of the broad, multidimensional construct of sexuality addressing physiologic, psychological, and social dimensions.
  
  
  METHODS
  Research articles, abstracts, standards of care, international reports.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Multiple insults to the physiologic, psychological, and social dimensions of sexuality can occur following the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The incidence of altered sexuality in cancer survivors is high, long lasting, and can diminish the quality of life of both the cancer survivor and the sexual partner. Additional research is needed to address these alterations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Nurses and other health care professions can begin to help cancer survivors adapt to changes in sexuality related to cancer and cancer treatment by initiating a discussion of sexuality at the time of diagnosis and throughout the trajectory of disease.
authors.affiliation: Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. dtierney@stanfordmed.org
authors.forename: D Kathryn
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Tierney
mesh_terms: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006066:Gonads / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D011788:Quality of Life; D019529:Sexuality; D017741:Survivors
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents