LAUSR

Purpose This study sought to evaluate the prevalence of menopausal symptoms in a population of reproductive-aged women remote from cancer therapy compared with a group of healthy similar-aged controls and with a cohort of late reproductive-aged (LR) controls. Methods Participants were assessed for symptoms of menopause, early follicular phase hormones, and ultrasound examinations. Menopausal symptoms were analyzed in exposed participants and controls using χ 2 analyses, Wilcoxon-Mann Whitney tests, and multivariable logistic regression models. Results One hundred seventy cancer survivors, 135 similar-aged controls, and 71 LR controls were followed prospectively for an average of 38 months. Compared with similar-aged controls, a greater proportion of survivors reported vasomotor symptoms at some point over the study period (35% vs 19%, p  < 0.01), and this proportion was similar to LR controls (44%, p  = 0.22). Survivors were more likely to be bothered by vaginal dryness (27%) than similar-aged controls (16%, p  = 0.02) or LR controls (14%, p  = 0.02). FSH levels were 38.4% higher in those with vasomotor symptoms compared with those without symptoms ( p  = 0.021). Conclusions Reproductive-aged cancer survivors have a higher prevalence of vasomotor symptoms and vaginal dryness than their similar-aged peers. Implications for Cancer Survivors Providers should be attuned to the high prevalence of menopausal symptoms in cancer survivors.