Global prevalence of sexual dysfunction in women with ovarian cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Ovarian cancer is one of the most common and complicated cancers among women, requiring timely treatment. The treatments and the disease itself can affect the sexual health of sufferers. This research aims to determine the global prevalence of sexual dysfunction (SD) in women with ovarian cancer.

For this research, a meticulous search was conducted on each database, including PubMed, ScienceDirect, Scopus WOS, Embase, and the Google Scholar search engine, using keywords related to the title. The scope of searches was unlimited at the time the reviews began until the end of November 2023. Inclusion criteria for this study included observational studies reporting the prevalence of sexual dysfunction (SD) in patients with ovarian cancer. Studies with full text available. Studies published in English. Cross-sectional, cohort, and case-control studies. Exclusion criteria included case studies, interventional studies, replication studies, and articles with full text unavailable, non-English studies, and animal studies. All relevant studies were then transferred to EndNote for reference management. Following data collection, researchers employed the advanced Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software (Version 2) and the random effects model for analysis. The I² index and tau² and Cochran's Q test was also used to verify the heterogeneity of studies, further enhancing the robustness of the research process. Funnel Plot and Egger test were used to evaluate the publication bias.

In the review of 17 studies with a sample size of 2018 people, the global prevalence of SD in women with ovarian cancer was found to be 37% (95%CI: 21.7-55.4). The meta-regression results showed a significant trend: as the sample size increased, the global prevalence of SD in ovarian cancer patients decreased (p < 0.05). Additionally, the rise in the year of conducting studies was found to be associated with a decrease in the global prevalence of SD in ovarian cancer patients (p < 0.05).

Given the high prevalence of sexual dysfunction (SD) in women with ovarian cancer and the associated complications, health systems need to implement timely training and interventions to reduce the incidence of these disorders.