Treatment for both localized and metastatic prostate cancer (PC) affects sexual function. In localized PC, erectile dysfunction (ED) has been researched, but seldom in advanced or metastatic PC. For a study, researchers sought to determine the prevalence of ED in patients with metastatic PC receiving androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) and to compare the severity of ED between patients receiving ADT with bilateral orchiectomy, hormonal therapy, androgen inhibitors, or a combination of these treatments. The study also sought to ascertain the relationship between the patient’s age, the length of their cancer (time since diagnosis), the TNM stage, the Gleason score, the level of serum prostate-specific antigen (PSA) at the time of diagnosis, the most recent PSA level, and the length of time since treatment began.
Adult patients with metastatic PC who got ADT in the outpatient clinics of the Philippine General Hospital participated in the cross-sectional research. The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) questionnaire’s 6-item erectile function domain was given participants to complete. From their records, more details on the participants were acquired. Data were examined to determine any correlation between the overall IIEF score, the degree of ED, and the patient characteristics.
Regardless of the chosen treatment method, there was a significant frequency of ED among the 56 patients who participated in this trial. Only 47 patients (83.93%) have severe ED, with a disease load ranging from 71.67 to 92.38%, whereas one patient (1.79%) has no ED at all. The clinical and demographic parameters of the patients did not show any correlation with the severity of ED.
Regardless of the kind of therapy employed, there was a significant frequency of ED among patients with metastatic PC who received ADT in the trial. However, there was no correlation between the patient’s clinical and demographic variables and the severity of ED.
Reference: annalsofoncology.org/article/S0923-7534(22)01484-3/fulltext
