Prostate cancer treatments can play havoc with men’s sex lives causing erectile dysfunction and other frustrating problems. For example, a recent study found about 60 percent of men with prostate cancer who had their prostate glands removed had not recovered their sexual function two years after their treatment. Many also lost some desire for sex and had a diminished ability to reach or enjoy orgasms. But new research shows that sex therapy can make a big difference.
For the study - published in the September 26 issue of the journal Cancer - researchers tested online and in-person sex therapy in 186 couples touched by prostate cancer. Results showed that sex therapy, whether in person or on the internet, brought big improvements in men's ability to get an erection. And the improvement lasted for at least a year.
At the study's start, half of these couples either participated in three face-to-face sex therapy sessions or interacted on a website that presented the same information and provided email feedback from a counselor. The other half of these couples waited three months to start counseling. A third group of 71 couples who lived too far away for face-to-face therapy also received Internet-based therapy. Both partners were asked to complete questionnaires that assessed sexual function and satisfaction before starting counseling, after the sessions, and at six months and one year after the sessions ended.
Before getting the therapy, 12 percent to 15 percent of the men said they were able to get an erection. Following the sessions that number increased to 36 percent to 44 percent of men. Even women who reported sexual difficulties said their sex lives improved following both types of counseling. But they key for couples is going to therapy sessions - 34 percent of couples dropped out, while those who completed most of the online programs reported better sex lives than those who ditched counseling.
While both types of counseling improved couples' sex lives, an Internet-based program may be easier to implement than one that is conducted face-to-face, said study researcher Leslie Schover, of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. “An Internet-based treatment has the advantage of costing less in counselor time and allowing expert health care providers to help cancer survivors who live too far away from a city or cancer center,” Schover said.
“This study proves that patients and their partners respond to instructive sex therapy,” Dr. Elizabeth Kavaler, a urologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City, who was not involved in the research, said. “Since insurance coverage for psychotherapy is sparse, it is encouraging to know that web-based help is available to these couples.”
Prostate cancer strikes nearly 241,000 men each year and kills 34,000.
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