But when a woman's ovaries are removed as part of cancer surgery, or when the ovaries are damaged by chemotherapy or pelvic radiation therapy, the loss of estrogen can trigger hot flashes and the vagina can become tight and dry. Some women can take replacement hormones to help alleviate these problems, and lubricating gels are also available to make intercourse easier. In women, about half of the androgens are made in the adrenal glands and half in the ovaries. When a woman goes through natural menopause, the adrenal glands keep making hormones. Women only need a tiny amount of androgen to have a normal level of sexual desire.
Most women have enough androgens, even after menopause.
Women who have premature menopause due to cancer treatment sometimes have lower androgen levels, which can decrease sexual desire and pleasure. Also, the ovaries provide about half the circulating testosterone in premenopausal women. In the study Shifren and her colleagues at nine sites around the US studied 75 healthy women, aged 31 to 56, who had lost their ovaries or uteruses before natural menopause. Before the testing began the women were given a questionnaire on their sexuality. The patches worked like nicotine patches, delivering testosterone through the skin.