Prostate Cancer Treatment Risks: Radical Prostatectomy

A radical prostatectomy is often the best choice for treating prostate cancer when it is in the localised or locally advanced stages (T1-T4). This means that the prostate cancer is contained within the prostate gland and the surrounding tissue.

A radical prostatectomy involves the surgical removal of the prostate gland and aims to remove all the cancerous cells from the area. It is often combined with radiotherapy or other prostate cancer treatment options such as hormone therapy.

Like all surgical procedures there are some risks and possible side effects.

Risks and Side Effects of Radical Prostatectomy

• Some men will experience urinary incontinence to varying degrees of severity after the operation. For more than 95% of men that experience this side effect, it will resolve itself within three to six months.
  

  Location of the Prostate Gland

• Some men find they have problems achieving an erection after a radical prostatectomy, but this should gradually improve over time. Only a very small minority of men find this problem persists long term.
• In around 40% of operations there will still be some remaining cancer cells. These can usually be removed using radiotherapy. In around a third of cases the cancer may return even after a successful radical prostatectomy.
• There is an extremely small risk of death due to surgical complications with a radical prostatectomy. Less that 0.1% of men under 65 and 0.5% of men over 65 who have this operation are likely to die as a result.

Despite this list of risks and side effects it is important to know that a radical prostatectomy is probably the best way to treat prostate cancer in younger men, where allowing the cancer to progress would shorten their life expectancy. It is now a fairly common procedure and most men recover very well, experiencing only temporary side effects.

Click here to find out about other prostate cancer treatment options.

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