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Background: Women at high risk to develop ovarian cancer opt for risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) to reduce the risk by 80-96%. RRSO leads to a direct onset of menopause in premenopausal women. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can be used to mitigate menopausal symptoms after RRSO. However, it is unclear whether HRT in these women is safe in terms of breast cancer (BC) risk. Methods: We performed a literature search and investigated national guidelines on the use of HRT following RRSO in BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 mutation carriers. We analyzed differences and similarities between the guidelines and describe what these guidelines were based upon. Results: Seven articles regarding HRT following RRSO in BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 mutation carriers were identified. None of the included studies yielded any evidence that short-term use of HRT following RRSO increases the risk of developing BC or negates the protective effect of RRSO in BRCA 1/2 mutation carriers without a personal history of BC. Eleven national guidelines were found and described. Conclusion: Short-term use of HRT after RRSO seems to be safe. The literature is more favorable toward estrogen alone. The ideal dosage and duration of use are unknown and remain to be investigated in future studies.

Background: There has been some doubts raised in earlier studies about the efficacy of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in reducing endocrine and sexual problems in women who have undergone a risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO)., Methods: In this prospective, observational study, we recruited 178 premenopausal women with a high risk for ovarian cancer. Fifty-seven women opted for RRSO and 121 for gynaecological screening (GS). Women completed questionnaires before surgery (T1) and 3 (T2) and 9 (T3) months post surgery, or at equivalent time points for the GS-group. Menopausal symptoms were assessed with the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Endocrine Subscale (FACT-ES) and sexual functioning with the Sexual Activity Questionnaire (SAQ). Groups were compared using repeated measures mixed effect models for continuous variables, and generalised estimating equations for longitudinal ordered categorical data., Results: Twenty-seven women who underwent RRSO used HRT after surgery (HRT-users) and 30 did not (HRT-non-users). There were no significant group differences at baseline on the outcome variables. Compared to the HRT-users, the HRT-non-users exhibited a significant increase in overall endocrine symptoms (p = 0.001, effect size (ES) = -0.40 and p < 0.001, ES = -0.59 at T1 and T2, respectively), and in sexual discomfort (p < 0.001, ES = 0.74 and p < 0.001, ES = 1.17). The effect size provides an indication of the magnitude of the observed group differences. An effect size of 0.50 or greater is generally considered to be clinically relevant. No significant differences over time were observed between the HRT-users and the GS-group on any of the outcomes., Conclusion: Our results suggest that HRT use in the first year after RRSO has beneficial effects in terms of minimising endocrine symptoms and sexual symptoms in premenopausal women who have undergone RRSO., (Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Objectives: To describe implications of premenopausal risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy (RRSO) on quality of life, endocrine symptoms, sexual function, osteoporosis, cardiovascular health, metabolic syndrome, cognitive impairment and safety of hormone replacement therapy., Methods: We searched the following electronic databases: The Cochrane Library, EMBASE, PsycInfo, and MEDLINE. We selected controlled and uncontrolled trials of premenopausal women undergoing RRSO. Two authors independently assessed studies for inclusion. Reference lists of included reports were searched manually for additional studies., Results: Surgical menopause leads to more menopausal complaints and sexual dysfunction than natural menopause. Overall quality of life is not affected by surgery. In the limited literature, there is no evidence that RRSO leads to more osteopenia in comparison with natural menopause at a young age. Cohort studies show a slight impaired cardiovascular health. Cognitive function decreases later in life in premenopausal oophorectomized women. Short-term hormone replacement therapy seems to decline postmenopausal complaints and does not seem to increase the risk for breast carcinoma in mutation carriers without a personal history of breast carcinoma., Conclusions: The conclusions of this systematic review are limited by the absence of randomized, controlled trials. There is growing evidence from observational studies that RRSO may impact negatively on all-cause non-survival endpoints.

Acquired perineovulvar defects are usually the result of excision of vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia (VIN) or invasive squamous cell carcinoma. Because both VIN and vulvar carcinoma have a tendency toward local recurrence, future reconstructive options should be reckoned with during treatment of the primary and all subsequent (pre-) malignant perineovulvar lesions. Hence, a proposal of sequence of reconstructive options for these defects is called for. In cases where local skin flaps suffice, these are preferably designed in such a fashion as not to sever the branches of the internal pudendal vascular system. In cases where either a pudendal thigh flap or an infragluteal flap may be used to close the perineovulvar defect, the pudendal thigh flap is to be preferred to preserve the infragluteal flap for future use. Only when these flaps no longer are available or sufficient to cover the defect should the gluteal thigh flap be applied. The use of myocutaneous flaps is rarely indicated to close isolated superficial perineovulvar defects.