The purpose of this study was to illuminate the experience of living after radical prostatectomy (RP) for localized prostate cancer (LPC). Ten men were interviewed after RP. The interview text was qualitatively analyzed using the content analysis. The men suffered from worry, anxiety, and distress, and longed for life as they had lived it before the diagnosis. Changes in bodily functions after RP include urine incontinence (UI) and/or erectile dysfunction (ED) making the patient feel like a changed man with a lost sex life, with changes in his intimate relations with his wife, and with lowered self-esteem. Most men choose to cope on their own. Coping strategies in our study population included finding new areas of interest and a new focus in the present. In the present study, living after RP meant striving to gain control over, and become reconciled with, the new life situation as a changed man living with an altered self.

The treatment of prostate cancer induces adverse effects. Although quantitative studies have evaluated the influence of these adverse effects on the quality of life, few studies have tried to gain a deeper understanding of how men live after external beam radiotherapy of localized prostate carcinoma, which is the purpose of this study. Ten men were interviewed in their homes. The narrative interviews were tape recorded and transcribed into a text. The text was analyzed qualitatively by a content analysis. To bear the emotional experience of the illness by oneself is a self-chosen strategy. Some men expressed a sense of being exposed in meetings with female caregivers. The treatment induced changes in body functions influencing daily life. In this new life situation these men are striving to reach a sense of having control, which includes control over disease progression and waning body function. Despite the negative influence of the treatment, the men are striving to become reconciled with their new life. The experience of living after external beam radiotherapy of localized prostate carcinoma could be understood as striving to reach a sense of control and becoming reconciled with a new way of life.

Meeting men in a similar situation, sharing experiences of living with the disease, and feeling allied to each other were important to the men in our study. The conversational support group provided the patient with prostate cancer a forum where sharing was made possible.

Few, if any, qualitative studies aimed at gaining an understanding of the experience of patients with prostate cancer have been done. The purpose of this study was to illuminate the meaning of being a patient living with untreated localized prostate cancer. Seven men with untreated localized prostate cancer were interviewed in their homes. The interviews were tape recorded and transcribed into text. The text was analyzed using a phenomenologic-hermeneutic approach inspired by Ricoeur's philosophy. The meaning of living with untreated localized prostate cancer could be interpreted as living life under a dark shadow. The disease was described as a threat to the patient's life. When living under this shadow, many of the men studied had an ambivalent wish both to share their experience with others and to be alone with their experiences of the disease. They believed that the disease had changed their lives, and their manhood was restricted by sexual dysfunctions and described as a burden. They used various coping strategies to manage this situation. Despite a positive relationship with their physicians, there is a risk that these patients will not be given the attention they need because of their good prognosis.