The Hard News

Well, apparently, I'm still having major Upload difficulties with Blogger... I still don't get the "Browse" button. I apologize for this...it is rather aggravating!

So, the exciting news filtering out of the medical community for any man who may be facing radical removal, is a new surgical procedure post-removal. It is still in the experimental stages but apparently is very, very successful thus far! I pulled this from one medical website...


"Men who undergo this procedure have a reasonable chance of regaining complete erectile function in 12 to 24 months. If the cancer, however, is bulging to one side, the surgeon must cut the nerve on that side of the gland to remove it. This procedure is called unilateral nerve sparing technique since the nerves on one side of the prostate are spared. If the cancer is bulging on both sides of the gland, the surgeon must cut the nerves on both sides of the prostate. There are instances where all the nerves surrounding the prostate must be cut to remove the gland called bilateral nerve resection. In this instance the patient will rarely regain erectile function. However, for those patients who require loss of the penile nerves on one or both sides, there is a nerve reconstruction procedure. It involves a nerve graft. During robotic prostatectomy, a piece of a nerve in the leg called the sural nerve is harvested and transplanted to the pelvis after removal of the prostate. This nerve graft will function as a conduit for regeneration of the penile nerves."

I would suggest anyone facing prostate surgery to ask the surgeon beforehand if he is able to perform this task should the removal warrant it. And, in the hands of a skilled surgeon, if this can be accomplished during the prostatectomy, it can be accomplished afterward. This gives hope to men who've lost the ability to get a decent hard-on because they've lost their prostate to cancer. Exciting news, indeed!!

I've heard back from my brother, but I've had to ask him to be more specific. I also heard from a Faithful Reader who has gone through this experience and he's given me permission to post his response. So, stay tuned...