As per a new study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine on September 23, breast cancer survivors usually face sexual problems.

The research was carried out by Mary Panjari, a researcher at Monash University Medical School in Prahran, Australia and her colleagues. They surveyed around 1,684 women in Australia within a year of detection of breast cancer in them. But, the study didn’t include women at later stage of cancer, having no partner or were widowed. Thus, out of the total, 1011 were the remaining. Further, 17 didn’t respond and thus the researchers were left with 994 women.

The women were made to fill the questionnaires consecutively for five years based on their treatment for breast cancer, the status of their partner, body figure, menopausal symptoms and sexual activities. After the analysis, it was found that 287 women had no sexual problem, but 707 had.

"The finding that 70 percent had sexual problems after diagnosis and initial treatment ... puts numbers to the anecdotal findings", said Panjari.

More than 80% of them had satisfactory sexual life before the diagnosis of breast cancer. These women suffered from menopausal symptoms after the diagnosis, which is also a factor in reducing sexual functioning.

Other major reasons were cancer medications and body image that also dampened sexual urge. Those women, who were taking aromatase inhibitors and also had body image issues, were 2.5 times more likely to develop sexual function problems.