One Thing at a Time… Timeliness of Rehabilitation for Sexual Problems in Men With Prostate Cancer

Abstract

ObjectiveThe randomised clinical trial ProCaRe (Prostate Cancer Rehabilitation) aimed to test the effect of sexual pre-habilitation in prostate cancer patients treated with radiotherapy concomitant with androgen deprivation therapy.We planned recruitment of 92 participants. The complex intervention designed with previously treated patients and partners included sexual counselling, penile rehabilitation and supervised exercise in groups. The primary outcome was sexual functioning measured by the International Index of Erectile Function Score (IIEF-5). The secondary outcomes included a reduction in irritative urinary problems and improvement in quality of life.ResultsWe identified eight eligible patients among nine screened between January 22th and June 1st, 2018. Among these patients, three accepted study enrollment but one withdrew because of a lack of energy. The study was closed because of slow recruitment, i.e. a low number of eligible patients and low participation rate (38%) according to the timeframe and intervention planned. The study had a strong design but was not sufficiently pilot-tested because the study site had too few eligible patients. Furthermore, at this early time of the disease trajectory, sexual rehabilitation was not perceived relevant to the patients or prioritised. Future studies should be co-designed with patients more representative for the target group.