How to fight prostate cancer without losing sexual function

Finding out you have prostate cancer may make you wonder if your sexual function is in jeopardy. Afterall, the prostate and the structures surrounding it play critical roles in the male reproductive system, specifically fertility and erectile function.

Fortunately, medical advancements are helping the 1 in 8 men diagnosed with prostate cancer preserve their sexual and urinary function through the use of emerging minimally invasive treatments. One approach is called prostate focal therapy which is designed to only destroy malignant tissue, leaving most of the healthy tissue intact.

Types of focal therapy:

• Cryotherapy: Cold temperatures in the form of gas are delivered through thin needles to destroy cancer cells.
• High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU): High-energy ultrasound waves are delivered through a probe in your rectum to destroy cancerous tissues.
• Irreversible electroporation (IRE): In this rapidly evolving focal therapy, imaging is used to appropriately place needles that deliver focused electrical currents to cancerous cells with the goal of destroying them.

“Focal treatments target specific areas of the prostate to avoid damaging structures, like the neurovascular bundles and urethra,” explains Dr. Zachary Kozel, a urologist at Aurora Health Care. “Neurovascular bundles are largely responsible for erectile function and damage to these nerves can greatly reduce erection strength and duration.”

Other prostate cancer treatments, like surgery or radiation, remove prostate tissue entirely or destroy healthy tissue through radiation.

“Targeting the entire prostate is a more aggressive approach and can increase the likelihood that there will be damage to the surrounding neurovascular bundles,” says Dr. Kozel.

But not everyone is a candidate for focal therapy.

“Patients with a very large burden of prostate cancer or those with cancer extending beyond the prostate are poor candidates for focal therapy,” says Dr. Kozel. “Focal therapy has the best outcomes for those who have less aggressive and non-metastatic prostate cancer.”

If you have questions about your prostate health or whether you could benefit from focal therapy, contact your health care provider.

Are you trying to find a doctor? Find one in Illinois or Wisconsin.