Prostate cancer surgery ‘game changer’ saves sex

Melbourne men are the first to receive a new surgical implant that could “revolutionise” prostate cancer treatment while not impacting their sexual performance.

Two men have had the new surgical implant and have retained their sexual function. function. Picture: iStock

Melbourne men are the first patients in the world to receive a new surgical implant that could “revolutionise” prostate cancer treatment — and encourage thousands of men to stop avoiding lifesaving screening.

Royal Melbourne Hospital urological surgeon Philip Dundee said many males avoid check-ups for the deadly disease — and in some cases, especially among young men, pursue different treatments — because they do not want to be among the 70 per cent who lose sexual function after surgery.

But a new thumbnail-sized device that is placed in patients at the time of their prostate removal operation and aims to regenerate damaged nerves could change this.

Dr Dundee said he thinks news of the trial could help stop men from delaying prostate cancer check-ups, as they often “wrap up their identity of being a man” in sex and were “reluctant” to get tested.

“Erectile dysfunction … can have quite a profound impact on patients’ quality of life and their relationships with their loved ones,” he said.

Australian Prostate Centre nurse Michael Cromer said being able to offer this treatment to the "huge volume” of distressed patients he treats would be a “game changer”, with current treatments sometimes unsuccessful or burdensome.

“The psychological impact of sexual dysfunction is devastating to a lot of men,” he said.

The Herald Sun can now reveal two men have successfully undergone surgery at Royal Melbourne Hospital — retaining sexual function — and the team hopes to recruit 18 more to trial the American-Switzerland technology.

Dr Dundee said they never want patients to suffer surgical side effects, but it was not always possible to avoid damaging the important nerves — which are invisible to the naked eye.

“They run so close to the prostate,” he said.

“Sometimes … we have to sacrifice some of those nerves in order to ensure that we get all of the cancer out.”

Dr Dundee said the pulse-generator implant sat underneath the men’s skin and was connected to paddles “inside the pelvis sitting on the nerves”.

“[The paddles] have electrodes on them that directly stimulate the nerves,” he said.

He said initially men use a handheld device to turn the permanent implant on.

“The long-term goal is that it would lead to better regeneration of those nerves, so that ultimately they wouldn’t need to use this device,” he said.

He stressed they could not “draw any firm conclusions” from two successful surgeries, but said if patients in the RMH and APC trial continue to respond well, it would be a “major breakthrough” and “revolutionise” treatment.

“So far we’ve been very impressed,” he said.

He said at this stage, the device needed to be placed during the prostate removal surgery — and cannot be fitted retrospectively.

But if the trial is successful, they may be able to investigate options for other prostate cancer patients, with 20,000 men diagnosed every year in Australia, and patients with other conditions, such as spinal cord injuries.