Know the Options and Risks of Prostate Cancer Surgery

Tuesday, January 18th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in American men. Doctors say it is important for men to know their options for treatment and the risks, which include incontinence and impotence. Now the risks may be even higher than researchers originally thought.

Ellis Corets is no stranger to prostate cancer. The disease runs in his family. At 68 years old, he leads a healthy active life. Seven years ago, Corets was diagnosed with prostate cancer. The good news is the cancer had not spread beyond the prostrate. "I didn't want to hear about a reoccurrence maybe 10 years later when my life expectancy is much greater than that,â€ he said. â€œSo I chose the surgery to be cured.â€

The operation is called radical prostatectomy and it removes the diseased prostate. It also carries the risk of damaging the tube which transports urine from the bladder, and the nearby nerves that control sexual function. "The majority of men after surgery in our community-based population who were potent prior to surgery were impotent after surgery," said Fred Hutchinson Cancer Centerâ€™s Janet Stanford.

The study is published in this week's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers from the Hutchinson Cancer Research Center found at 18 months or more following surgery, 60 per cent of men could not achieve an erection.
Eight per cent developed bladder control problems. The larger scope of the study may help explain the discrepancy Corets has seen when talking with men in prostate cancer support groups about what they were told to expect. "Before the procedure, doctors would tell them there was a 20 per cent chance,â€ he explained. â€œWhat I observed in a small sampling of people in my support groups was that it was more like 60 per cent.â€

Besides surgery, men with prostate cancer that hasn't spread may have other options including radiation therapy. "Men, in terms of their decision making when they're trying to choose treatment, should be aware of the experience of the men in our study when making treatment decision,â€ Stanford said. â€œDespite the level of urinary and sexual dysfunction after radical prostatectomy, the majority of men in our study, 76 per cent of them, reported that indeed they were pleased, delighted, satisfied with their surgery. About 72 per cent of them said if they were faced with the treatment decision again, they would choose radical prostatectomy as primary treatment in hopes of curing their prostate cancer.â€