Martha J. Hickey

Description:Female sexual dysfunction (FSD) has historically received less attention than male sexual dysfunction, in terms of research, diagnosis and treatment, for various reasons, including culturally specific societal stigma, lack of awareness and diagnostic complexities. Sex-hormone insufficiency has long been considered a primary cause of FSD1, particularly during menopause. Menopause marks the end of reproductive capabilities, but it is also widely perceived as a period of sexual function decline2. However, although menopause undeniably brings hormonal adjustments, the link with FSD is complex. For example, we conducted a narrative review of over 200 studies on changes in sexual function during the perimenopausal period (stage –2 to stage +1 according to The Stages of Reproductive Aging Workshop + 10 staging system) and found that postmenopausal status alone does not associate with FSD (as summarized in Table 1), particularly when a diagnosis of distress was incorporated into the survey. Other psychological and relational factors influence the sexual health of middle-aged women and might exert a greater effect than the hormonal changes associated with menopause3.

Description:Background: All those born with functioning ovaries will eventually experience menopause, and many will be symptomatic. However, significant gaps in the evidence base for menopause care remain. This National Institute for Health and Care Research James Lind Alliance Menopause Priority Setting Partnership (MAPS) will engage with clinicians and those with lived experience globally to determine the leading priorities for future menopause research. Methods: MAPS will follow the established James Lind Alliance methodology which has already resulted in over 100 'top 10' research priorities across health domains. It will be led by a steering group comprised of clinicians and lived experience members. Leveraging the networks of steering group members and partner organisations, the priority setting partnership will identify evidence uncertainties using an online survey. Evidence checking will be undertaken to determine which questions have already been answered. Prioritisation will be done in two stages, initially by online survey and then at a face-to-face workshop. Background: Ethical approval was not required. The final top 10 priorities for menopause, as ranked by stakeholders at the final consensus workshop, will be disseminated in the relevant peer-reviewed journals. A final report will be available on the MAPS and James Lind Alliance websites. The leading priorities will inform the future global research agenda for menopause.

Description:Notable advances have been made in improving survival outcomes in various cancers, but some have incurred undesirable costs and effects to patients with respect to fertility and menopause. Patients are living longer with cancer, and patient reported outcomes are influencing decision-making by individuals and their health care providers. It is essential to evaluate existing standards of care on an ongoing basis and prioritize quality of life and long-term survivorship, particularly for interventions in early-stage cancers and risk-reducing strategies that often yield long-term life expectancy.

Description:Surgical menopause, the removal of both ovaries prior to natural menopause, may impact short-and long-term physical and emotional health. An increasingly common cause of surgical menopause is risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) in those at high inherited risk of ovarian cancer. The WHAM (What Happens After Menopause?) study is the largest prospective controlled study of RRSO. It measured the effect of RRSO compared to controls on physical and mental health over 2 years, and the potential modifying effects of menopausal hormone therapy (MHT). WHAM consists of 104 premenopausal women with BRCA1/2 pathogenic variants undergoing RRSO and 102 age-matched comparators who retained their ovaries. Outcomes including sexual function, vasomotor symptoms, cognition, mood, cardiometabolic health and bone health were measured between baseline and 24 months. MHT uptake after RRSO and the impact of MHT on these outcomes were assessed. Findings of WHAM have been published in more than ten manuscripts. Key findings include that RRSO adversely affects sexual function, sleep, and mood compared to comparison women. After RRSO, vasomotor symptoms (VMS) are generally mild, peak at 3 months, and do not worsen by 24 months. MHT reduces but does not resolve VMS. Loss of bone density was observed at 24 months and was partially mitigated by MHT. Cardiometabolic health and cognition were largely maintained at 24 months. This manuscript summarises the published findings of WHAM. These unique data will enhance evidence-based care in surgical menopause and will support shared decision-making around RRSO, ensuring rapid translation of new evidence into clinical practice. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry: registration no: ACTRN12615000082505; anzctr.org.au.

Description:This is a protocol for a Cochrane Review (intervention). The objectives are as follows: To assess the effects of surgery and minimally invasive treatments for uterine fibroids.