Forum Discussion
New Australian MonaLisa TouchTM clinical trial
MonaLisa TouchTM (MLT) is a new, non-hormonal
treatment for women with vaginal atrophy (VA).
Vaginal atrophy most commonly occurs after menopause, when oestrogen levels fall and the walls of the vagina become thinner, drier and may become inflamed. VA also affectS women who have had breast cancer, where medications affect oestrogen levels and bring on menopausal symptoms. This often distressing condition can cause painful burning, itching, dryness, painful intercourse and pain during urination.
MLT is a type of fractional CO2 laser technology treatment which involves pin-point laser applications to the vaginal lining. At present, there is not enough evidence about the effectiveness of MonaLisa TouchTM for it to be recommended as a medical treatment. It is currently expensive to access and there is no Medicare rebate available. This article provides an interesting overview of fractional CO2 therapy for vaginal atrophy.
University of NSW Associate Professor Jason Abbott (a gynaecologist and obstetrician) is currently running a clinical trial in Australia which will evaluate how effective MonaLisa TouchTM is in treating postmenopausal VA symptoms in women with a history of breast cancer.
The study is being conducted in Sydney.
You can read more about the trial on our Clinical trials for women who have completed active treatment webpage.
28 Replies
- I have just completed 3 rounds of this laser treatment and am very pleased with the outcome.
Yes, it is very invasive but with the right gynecologist, can make the whole experience feel so much better - Not that keen either @Zoffiel on the puddling around, but desperate times call for desperate measures...
Have posted into the group @SoldierCrab :) Eww, people puddling around in your bits for a couple of months only to find you have to do it all again if you were in the control group. I can feel myself cringing at the thought of it.
Oh well, if that is what they have to do to get the data then more power to those willing to get into the stirrups to prove it. I'd probably give it a go, would get the dust out of there if nothing else :)
- @Jane221 can you please post this into the Lets talk about Vaginas group ....
- Hi, just a quick update: I have applied to participate in the trial and got a lovely email back from Prof Abbott. Looks like I might be eligible (yay!) but still need to go through the screening process etc. It is a 12 month study which uses a randomised trial method to determine the effectiveness of the Mona Lisa treatment (MLT) compared to a placebo. Participants will be randomly placed into groups and then either being put into the MLT group or a placebo group. Participants won't know which group they're in during the study as the procedures (biopsies / vaginal examinations / use of the MLT device etc) will all look the same - they just don't switch on the laser for the placebo group :)
A total of 3 treatments will be performed with a 4 week break in between. Participants will be assessed 4 weeks after each treatment and then 6 months after the final one to find out what changes may / may not have happened. If the MLT procedure is found to be successful then women in the placebo group will have the opportunity to have a 3 treatment course for free, following the completion of the study.
Hopefully the results of the study will show MLT to be successful and a possible therapy for those of us that can't use oestrogen hormone creams etc. If the trial shows the therapy to be helpful then there will be good evidence to lobby to have the procedure available through Medicare, to make it more affordable, as those of us that have looked into this before have baulked at the expense, especially on top of so many other financial hits because of treatment.
Will let you know if I'm accepted and how things go. Jane xx - I hear you both. If my cancer was not triple neg I would not go near them, ha unfortunately said that I don’t know what I would have done as I was getting a UTI every two to three weeks it was an awful time. I wish Mona Lisa was more affordable. Paula x
- I too was interested (temporarily) in the vagifem pessaries and my oncologist was guardedly OK about trying them, but then I read the list of potential side effects on the product website! As with chemo, I am accustomed to a scary list and recognising this is just a list of possibilities and may never happen, but given existing conditions I went off the idea of using the product fairly quickly.
- I hope to keep up with the maintenance treatments @mum2jj. I think it has helped to avoid issues like UTI’s etc. I think that without being on Femara the results would be much better and last longer between treatments. While many women do suffer from these issues who are not on hormonal treatment for bc, the incidence is much higher if you are. I think I read something like 40% compared to 60%.
I did discuss my issues with my oncologist but she said pessaries are not something she would want me to try unless the situation was much worse. Then she has had women who use them for short periods of time. I definitely don’t want to compromise my recurrence chances! It seems that the laser treatment is my best option. I think it has helped.
Deanne xxx - @Afraser maybe mine was just too much chemo in a short span of time. Who knows, mine was certainly a slower onset than you femera ladies. The only plus side is that being triple neg I can use (reluctantly) vagifem pessaries which have helped with the UTI’s I was plagues with and the dryness. @Deanne are you going to have more treatments ? I agree it is something never mentioned by my oncologist as a side effect. @Jane221it will be great if you can get involved. Keep us posted as to what’s involved. Maybe I should plan a few more trips to Sydney.
Hugs all.
Paula x - I was way past the menopause before cancer and before starting Femara - yes, it could be age related, but it's too much of a coincidence that I had no issue whatsoever, including during chemo, before starting Femara and non functional 6 months later! I accept it as part of the treatment, and have simply worked around it, but It's still one of the side effects that isn't spoken too much about by oncologists and clearly can cause a lot of angst at an already difficult time for many women.
