Prostate Cancer Treatment Hub

Dealing With Impotence Caused By Prostate Cancer Treatment
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Defined Tag: Prostate Cancer Treatment.

A number of the treatments used to combat prostate cancer are known to cause impotence. This is because the prostate gland is in close proximity to the nerves that control and enable erection and any nerve damage sustained during surgery or radiotherapy can cause penile dysfunction. For you as a man this is a major concern and so the chances of developing impotence should be discussed with your oncologist before you decide on a course of prostate cancer treatment.

Luckily a lot of impotence cases caused by any prostate cancer treatment are only temporary and normal erections will return within 6-12 months. Even so this is a long time to be impotent and many men worry how their inability to have sex will affect their relationships. If you are diagnosed with prostate cancer and your chosen form of treatment is known to affect the functioning of the penis then you must talk to your partner and explain that it is what you want to do – most partners would prefer you to be alive and impotent than not alive at all.

There are drugs available that can cause an erection and these can be prescribed until normal functioning returns. Talk to your doctor about this and find out if there are any side effects from taking the tablets. Alternatively you and your partner can find other ways to pleasure each other so that sexual intercourse is no longer the main part of your sex life.

In addition to impotence there is a chance that your prostate cancer will also make you sterile. The prostate gland adds the fluid part to semen and so removal of the gland means that ejaculate is no longer produced. This makes it virtually impossible to impregnate a female as the fluid is needed to carry the sperm. This complication should also be a factor when considering which prostate cancer treatment to choose, especially if you are still young and want children in the future. Sterility is often only temporary with radiation and chemotherapy used in your prostate cancer treatment. However surgery to remove the entire gland will ultimately result in permanent sterility.

Discussing the various options with your partner will help to put them into perspective and as your prostate cancer treatment affects her as much as you then it is important to be open from the start. Being diagnosed with prostate cancer is a shock for anyone and at some point you will need the support of your partner and so talking about everything from treatment to side effects to how you are feeling and what you want for the future is a very important and often helpful step. They may even have a few suggestions that hadn’t occurred to you and at this stage you need all the suggestions you can get.

It is important that you take care of your prostate health. For more information and resources on Prostate Cancer, please visit the site http://www.Prostate-Cancer-Treatment-Hub.com