Erectile Dysfunction and Penile Bulb Dose Following Definitive Prostate Radiation Therapy

Abstract

Background: Erectile dysfunction (ED) is a common side effect of prostate cancer treatment, affecting up to 50% of patients after radiation therapy. Objectives: This study aims to analyze the correlation between the dose received by the penile bulb (PB) and ED in men who underwent definitive radiation therapy for early-stage prostate cancer without androgen deprivation therapy. Methods: The study included 40 patients who received 3D conformal radiation therapy (3D-CRT) for localized prostate cancer and were reported to be potent before treatment, as determined by the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-15) questionnaire. The dose to the PB was measured using dose volume histograms (DVHs), and the IIEF-15 questionnaire was completed again 3 months after 3D-CRT. The Pearson correlation coefficient and linear regression test were used to examine the correlation between the ED score and PB doses. Statistical significance was considered if the P value was less than 0.05. Results: The mean age of the patients was 75.5 ± 5.70 years. The average ED score based on the questionnaire was 15 ± 10.55. Twenty percent of the patients had moderate ED, while 80% had mild ED (all patients reported a decrease in potency after 3D-CRT). However, the correlation between the ED score and the PB mean dose was not statistically significant. Conclusions: This study revealed ED in all prostate cancer patients after 3D-CRT, but no significant correlation was found between the dose received by the PB and radiotherapy-induced impotence.