Can You Have Sex With Prostate Cancer

What We Dont Know

While research is promising, thereâs still a lot scientists need to learn. Some things to consider:

• Thereâs no proof that ejaculating more actually causes lower chances of prostate cancer. For now, doctors just know theyâre connected. It may be that men who do it more tend to have other healthy habits that are lowering their odds.
• Ejaculation doesnât seem to protect against the most deadly or advanced types of prostate cancer. Experts donât know why.
• Scientists donât know if ejaculation during sex vs. masturbation has the same benefits. Some research has found that the makeup of semen is different for each. For example, semen during sex has higher levels of sperm and some chemicals. Itâs possible that these could make a difference in a manâs odds of having prostate cancer.
• Not all studies have found a benefit. The 2016 study got attention because of its size and length . But some smaller studies have not shown the same good results. A few even found that some men, specifically younger men, who masturbated more had slightly higher chances of prostate cancer. Some researchers wonder if a manâs age may affect whether more ejaculation helps.

What About Other Treatments I Hear About

When you have cancer you might hear about other ways to treat the cancer or treat your symptoms. These may not always be standard medical treatments. These treatments may be vitamins, herbs, special diets, and other things. You may wonder about these treatments.

Some of these are known to help, but many have not been tested. Some have been shown not to help. A few have even been found to be harmful. Talk to your doctor about anything youre thinking about using, whether its a vitamin, a diet, or anything else.

Sex And The Prostate: Overcoming Erectile Dysfunction When You Have Prostate Disease

• By Harvard Prostate Knowledge

If you are concerned about erectile function, its important to understand what erectile dysfunction really is. Failing to have an erection one night after youve had several drinks or even for a week or more during a time of intense emotional stress is not erectile dysfunction. Nor is the inability to have another erection soon after an orgasm. Nearly every man occasionally has trouble getting an erection, and most partners understand that.

Erectile dysfunction is the inability to attain and maintain an erection sufficient for sexual intercourse at least 25% of the time. The penis doesnt get hard enough, or it gets hard but softens too soon. The problem often develops gradually. One night it may take longer or require more stimulation to get an erection. On another occasion, the erection may not be as firm as usual, or it may end before orgasm. When such difficulties occur regularly, its time to talk to your doctor.

Erectile dysfunction can have many causes, including some forms of prostate disease and medications and surgery for prostate cancer. Fortunately, in many cases, this problem can often be effectively addressed. Some men find relief by taking medications to treat erectile dysfunction. If these arent effective for you, a number of other options, including injections and vacuum devices, are available. The possibility of finding the right solution is now greater than ever.

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Urine Leakage During Ejaculation

Climacturia is the term used to describe the leakage of urine during orgasm. This is fairly common after prostate surgery, but it might not even be noticed. The amount of urine varies widely anywhere from a few drops to more than an ounce. It may be more common in men who also have stress incontinence.

Urine is not dangerous to the sexual partner, though it may be a bother during sex. The leakage tends to get better over time, and condoms and constriction bands can help. If you or your partner is bothered by climacturia, talk to your doctor to learn what you can do about it.

What Will I Learn By Reading This

When you have treatment for your prostate cancer, you may have erectile dysfunction also known as impotence. Erectile dysfunction is a very common side effect . Side effects from prostate cancer treatment are different from one man to the next. They may also be different from one treatment to the next. Some men have no erectile dysfunction. The good news is that there are ways to deal with erectile dysfunction. In this booklet you will learn:

• What erectile dysfunction is
• Why prostate cancer treatment can cause erectile dysfunction
• What can be done about erectile dysfunction
• How erectile dysfunction may affect your sex life
• What your partner can expect

It is important for you to learn how to deal with erectile dysfunction so that you can continue to have a satisfying intimate relationship.

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Types Of Prostate Cancer Treatments

For men who have undergone prostate cancer surgery, for example, many surgeons recommend avoiding sexual activity for at least several weeks in order to allow for proper healing. Radiation therapy, hormone therapy, and chemotherapy do not necessarily preclude men from returning fairly rapidly to their prior level of sexual activity.

However, there can be side effects as a result of these treatments that make sex difficult or impossible. These possible side effects include fatigue and erectile dysfunction. So even if you’ve been given the go-ahead by your doctor, you may find it necessary to redefine what sex means for you and your partner and to explore new or alternative sources of pleasure.

If you have been treated with implanted radioactive seeds , your doctor will likely give you a certain time frame wherein sexual activity should be avoided due to the presence of radioactivity within your prostate. Most men can have sex one to two weeks after their seed implant. Men should wear a condom for the first two months after their seed implant. This break in sexual activity is also meant to allow for proper healing following the implantation procedure.

How Will Sex After Prostate Cancer Be Different

One of the treatments of prostate cancer is to remove a portion of the prostate or the totality of the gland before cancer spreads beyond it You may have heard that the tumor is inside the capsule, but moving fast.

The procedure is known as radical prostatectomy and involves incisions, either above the perineum or on the lower abdomen.

Newer surgeries are sometimes robot-assisted, and we also have laparoscopic prostatectomies that do not require a large incision.

The end result is the removal of a portion or the totality of the prostate, and certain surgical approaches may be associated with a lower risk of nerve damage than others. Youll see this referred to as nerve-sparing prostatectomies throughout this guide.

As soon as a man is informed that he will need to go through a Radical Prostatectomy, the likelihood is that one of the very first questions will be about the effect that it will have on their sex life. In a lot of mens minds, the surgery is thought of like its castration.

However, now that there are multiple types of nerve-sparing prostate surgery, many men have found they can maintain sexual activity after surgery.

Likewise, there are plenty of sexual activities open to those who do find they still have the desire, even with some physical changes. We want to help you understand the changes that men can experience after prostate surgery, whether that is physical or mental.

For more information on prostate surgery, click here.

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What Is Advanced Prostate Cancer

When prostate cancer spreads beyond the prostate or returns after treatment, it is often called advanced prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer is often grouped into four stages.

• Stages I & II: The tumor has not spread beyond the prostate. This is often called early stage or localized prostate cancer.
• Stage III: Cancer has spread outside the prostate, but only to nearby tissues. This is often called locally advanced prostate cancer.
• Stage IV: Cancer has spread outside the prostate to other parts such as the lymph nodes, bones, liver or lungs. This stage is often called advanced prostate cancer.

When an early stage prostate cancer is found, it may be treated or placed on surveillance . If prostate cancer spreads beyond the prostate or returns after treatment, it is often called advanced prostate cancer. Stage IV prostate cancer is not curable, but there are many ways to control it. Treatment can stop advanced prostate cancer from growing and causing symptoms.

There are several types of advanced prostate cancer, including:

Biochemical Recurrence

If your Prostate Specific Antigen level has risen after the first treatment but you have no other signs of cancer, you have biochemical recurrence.

Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer

• Lymph nodes outside the pelvis
• Bones

Metastatic Hormone-Sensitive Prostate Cancer

For Gay And Bisexual Men

A partner who is usually insertive, or top, during sex may want to consider changing to receive anal penetration, as sex may be difficult without a full erection.

In the case of a prostatectomy, a partner who usually receives penetration may find that sex is less pleasurable, as the prostate gland usually contributes to the sensation.

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Can You Get Erections After Prostate Cancer Treatment

If you have ever wondered whether you’ll be able to have an erection after prostate cancer treatment, you are not alone. Many men who are facing a prostate cancer diagnosis, or who have undergone prostate cancer treatment, are worried about whether or not they will be able to have an erection after prostate cancer.

What Are The Current Expectations With Regard To Outcomes After Radical Prostatectomy

Following a series of anatomical discoveries of the prostate and its surrounding structures about 2 decades ago, changes in the surgical approach permitted the procedure to be performed with significantly improved outcomes. Now after the surgery, expectations are that physical capacity is fully recovered in most patients within several weeks, return of urinary continence is achieved by more than 95% of patients within a few months, and erection recovery with ability to engage in sexual intercourse is regained by most patients with or without oral phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors within 2 years.

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What Kind Of Treatment Will I Need

There are many ways to treat prostate cancer. The main kinds of treatment are observation, active surveillance, surgery, radiation, hormone therapy, and chemo. Sometimes more than one kind of treatment is used.

The treatment thats best for you will depend on:

• Your age
• Any other health problems you might have
• The stage and grade of the cancer
• Your feelings about the need to treat the cancer
• The chance that treatment will cure the cancer or help in some way
• Your feelings about the side effects that might come with treatment

The Importance Of Quality Of Life

Its only normal to want to drive into the practicalities. Before you go any further, I want you to understand a key metric, which is particularly challenging to standardize.

Its called Quality of Life, usually shortened to QoL in the medical literature.

With Prostate Cancer, its a particularly important one, due to the high rates of survival for those with localized prostate cancer .

Thats why its so important to understand the impact that various surgeries or treatments will have on you.

Quality of Life is how they assess the suitability of any treatment.

Those sort of difficult questions is why QoL is a factor. If youre a sexually active man in your sixties or seventies and they are offering you preventative surgery after a biopsy, you need to ask yourself about the impact it will have, what alternatives are available to treat prostate cancer.

Furthermore, you should always ask what the quality of life after that surgery or treatment will be like.

Thats why we put together this quick guide to erectile function, mens health and sex after prostate surgery.

Its not exhaustive by any means, but should certainly give you a jumping off point to better make these decisions that will have a serious impact on a really key aspect of your life.

One last note before we get into it. If the cancer is malignant, surgeons will always push you for a radical prostatectomy, to prevent the cancer from spreading to your lymph nodes.

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Etiology Of Prostate Cancer

The etiology of prostate cancer is idiopathic and the cause is still unknown. Prostate cancer has been attributed to the changes in the genes of normal prostate cell. The anomaly of the genes leads to changes in cell growth and division along with apoptosis. Hereditary prostate cancer has been linked to mutations in RNASEL, MSH2, MLH1, BRCA1, BRCA2 and HOXB13 genes. However, there are more reported cases of prostate cancer due to acquired gene mutations. They have been linked to increased levels of testosterone and insulin-like growth factor-1 however, these factors are still not fully understood and need further studies. Radiation and some chemicals leading to cancer have been associated with the mutations in prostate cells leading to cancer. However, all these need further validation.

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Surgery To Remove The Prostate

You no longer ejaculate semen if you have had a radical prostatectomy. This is because the prostate gland and 2 glands called the seminal vesicles are removed. The seminal vesicles make the liquid part of the sperm. Your testicles will still make sperm cells but they will be reabsorbed back into your body.

You are still able to have an orgasm, but it will be a dry orgasm. Some men say that a dry orgasm without semen feels normal. But other men find that their orgasm is less intense and pleasurable. The loss of a visible ejaculation can be significant for some men and their partners. Some men say that it feels different but they have managed to find ways to adjust to this.

If you are used to having anal sex and you are the receiving partner, surgery to remove the prostate gland can change this experience. Some men can find the penis rubbing against the prostate gland pleasurable. So if the prostate gland is no longer there, anal sex might feel different. You could look at different ways of enjoying sex and being intimate. Counselling and sex therapy might help.

• Read about surgery to remove your prostate gland

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How To Maintain Your Sex Life After Prostate Surgery

Although prostate surgery can affect your sexual experience and performance, getting surgery to remove part or all of your prostate doesnt mean that you can no longer have sex or enjoy a satisfying sexual life.

However, it does mean that you may need to make some changes to how you and your partner have sex. These may include using ED medications, erection-promoting devices or engaging in penile rehabilitation exercises to keep your penis stimulated and healthy.

If youve recently had prostate surgery, its important to talk to your healthcare provider before you make any changes to your health habits. Theyll be able to inform you about what you can do to restore and improve your sexual function after surgery.

How Soon After Prostate Cancer Treatment Can I Be Sexually Active Again

This will depend on what type of treatment you have had and how you feel. It could be several weeks, for others it may be a lot longer for erections to return. Some men will never be able to keep an erection without the help of artificial methods like medicines or medical devices . If you were having problems having erections before treatment, this will not get better after treatment.

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Sexual Performance After Prostate Cancer And Getting Back To Enjoyable Sex After Prostate Surgery Is Possible Heres How:

1. Masturbate solo sex is a great way to help you relax, build confidence, and find out how your body will respond after surgery.

2. Kegel exercises mastering these pelvic floor exercises before surgery can actually improve your orgasm after surgery. They may even help you achieve multiple orgasms. Bonus they help strengthen urinary control, too.

3. Involve your partner remember that sex is best as a team sport so the sooner you work together, the better. Use physical and emotional intimacy to build up to penetration.

4. Stay ahead of Erectile Dysfunction oral medication for ED is a great way to speed sexual recovery. Using prescriptions such as Viagra or Cialis, even for a short time, can give you the confidence and sexual potency you need.

5. Have sex the more sex you have, the more sex youll have. Meaning, penile rehabilitation through touching, intimacy, and erection practice will actually get you back in the game faster.

Can Sex Increase The Risk Of Prostate Cancer

Number of sexual partners, age at first intercourse, and ejaculation frequency appear to influence a mans risk for prostate cancer, according to new research.

The notion that sexual activity might affect prostate cancer risk has been controversial. A meta-analysis published in 2002 reported that increased ejaculation frequency and having more sexual partners were associated with prostate cancer risk, but age at first intercourse was not.

Since then, more research has been conducted. The current study incorporated the newer studies and applied a dose-response analysis to the data to determine the roles of the above factors.

The research team searched relevant databases and identified twenty-two studies on the topic published through April 2018. Overall, the studies included 55,490 participants from nine countries. Most studies came from North America, but Europe, Australia, Asia, the Caribbean, and Cuba were also represented.

They found that men with fewer sexual partners were at lower risk for prostate cancer. For every 10 female partners the men had, their risk increased 1.10 fold.

First intercourse at an older age also seemed to lower prostate cancer risk, which was decreased 4% for every five years of delay.

However, hormonal levels, injury, and inflammation might also be involved, the authors noted.

Additional research is needed to validate these findings, the authors said.

Resources

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