Vaginal Oxygen Plus Hyaluronic Acid on Lower Urinary Tract Symptoms in Breast Cancer Survivors

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the effect of vaginal oxygen and hyaluronic acid on lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) in breast cancer survivors.

Method: A prospective trial was conducted at a university hospital's Menopause Outpatient Clinic. Breast cancer patients experiencing LUTS received intravaginal natural oxygen for 15 min, coupled with a 2% hyaluronic acid solution during the last 5 min. This treatment was performed five times at 15-day intervals. Assessments were repeated at each application and 60 days after the last application. Scores on the Urogenital Distress Inventory-6 (UDI-6) short form and its single items assessing different LUTS aspects were determined.

Results: Treatment in 85 breast cancer patients decreased the UDI-6 total score (from 24.8 ± 19.9 to 17.5 ± 16.2;  < 0.001) and subscales evaluating irritative ( = 0.001), stress ( = 0.006) and obstructive discomfort ( = 0.001) symptoms. In multivariate analysis, aromatase inhibitors were independently associated with a greater improvement of LUTS (coefficient of regression [CR] - 8.05, 95% confidence interval [CI] -13.41, -2.64;  = 0.004)). The use of a gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analog was associated with a greater improvement of irritative symptoms (CR -2.42, 95% CI -4.75, -0.08;  = 0.042), while tamoxifen reduced the improvement of stress symptoms (CR 2.49, 95% CI 0.10, 4.90;  = 0.041).

Conclusion: Short-term treatment with vaginal oxygen and hyaluronic acid appeared to improve LUTS of breast cancer patients.