Treatment for vaginal cancer can change the look and feel of the vulva and vagina. Radiation therapy may make skin in the treatment area dry, itchy and tender. Ask your treatment team about ways to manage these changes. Skin reactions will gradually improve after treatment finishes.
Pelvic radiation therapy can narrow the vagina, causing thinning of the walls and dryness. Surgery for vaginal cancer may also make the vagina shorter or narrower.
You may be offered vaginal dilators to help keep the vagina open and prevent it from closing over. Dilators may help make sex and follow-up pelvic examinations more comfortable. Ask your doctor, nurse or physiotherapist for more information about using vaginal dilators. They may also suggest using hormone creams or vaginal moisturisers to help with vaginal discomfort and dryness.
The plastic vaginal dilators they gave me were sturdy, white and horrible. I didn’t want to use them in such an intimate area, so I bought my own. Buying pretty silicone dilators gave me a sense of control, and they were a lot more comfortable to use.
Jane
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Prof Alison Brand, Director, Gynaecological Oncology, Westmead Hospital, NSW; Gemma Busuttil, Radiation Therapist, Crown Princess Mary Cancer Centre, Westmead Hospital, NSW; Kim Hobbs, Clinical Specialist Social Worker, Gynaecological Cancer, Westmead Hospital, NSW; Dr Ming-Yin Lin, Radiation Oncologist, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, VIC; Dr Lisa Mackenzie, Clinical Psychologist Registrar, HNE Centre for Gynaecological Cancer, Hunter New England Local Health District, NSW; Anne Mellon, CNC – Gynaecological Oncology, HNE Centre for Gynaecological Cancer, Hunter New England Local Health District, NSW; A/Prof Tarek Meniawy, Medical Oncologist, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital and The University of Western Australia, WA; Dr Archana Rao, Gynaecological Oncologist, Senior Staff Specialist, Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, QLD; Tara Redemski, Senior Physiotherapist – Cancer and Blood Disorders, Gold Coast University Hospital, QLD; Angela Steenholdt, Consumer; Maria Veale, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council QLD.
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