Quality of life before, during and after treatment for gynecologic cancer

Objective: Women with gynecologic cancer are confronted with difficult decisions regarding their treatment. We studied the relationship between medical procedures and outcome on quality of life. Methods: Women with gynecologic cancer and a follow-up of more than 5 years were studied prospectively before and after surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Results: Pretreatment counseling and the consent process is a difficult situation for patients, regardless of what treatment modality is planned, particularly if they are very anxious. After treatment, body image, partnership, and sexuality related to the treatment procedure become more important than in the pretreatment phase. Conclusion: Patient-oriented clinical research is necessary to understand patients' needs before and after treatment for gynecologic cancer. Physicians should be trained in communication. Psychosocial follow-up should be integrated into post-treatment care. Quality management tools should be used to improve quality of life before and after treatment for gynecologic cancer.