Assessment Methods for Post Radiotherapy Vaginal Stenosis

Abstract

Radiotherapy (RT) or braquitherapy performed in women with gynecological cancer can result in diseases such as vaginal stenosis, causing emotional stress and functional injury. Currently, there is no vaginal stenosis assessment standards, which could make it more difficult to diagnose it. The objective of this study was to perform a literature review about the assessment methods that are used to classify vaginal stenosis in patients submitted to radiotherapy. The research considered articles published from 1972 to 2008 in Pubmed and Scielo databases. Articles were selected by accessibility, considering incidence, methods and forms of vaginal stenosis assessment. There are just a few studies that evaluated vaginal stenosis and different assessment methods were found for vaginal stenosis in patients who underwent to RTand/or braquitherapy as a treatment whether associated or not to the surgery with changeable incidences. The literature review showed that there is not an assessment standard for vaginal stenosis, making diagnosis difficult to be done. More studies are needed to standardize the assessment of vaginal stenosis, which would allow statistics to verify the real incidence and treatment results of these patients.