The erectile and ejaculatory implications of the surgical management of rectal cancer

Abstract

Colorectal cancer is a significant cause of cancer‐related deaths worldwide. Although advances in surgical technology and technique have decreased mortality rates, surviving patients often experience sexual dysfunction as a common complication. The development of the lower anterior resection has greatly decreased the use of the radical abdominoperineal resection surgery, but even the less radical surgery can result in sexual dysfunction, including erectile and ejaculatory dysfunction. Improving the knowledge of the underlying causes of sexual dysfunction in this context and developing effective strategies for preventing and treating these adverse effects are essential to improving the quality of life for postoperative rectal cancer patients. This article aims to provide a comprehensive evaluation of erectile and ejaculatory dysfunction in postoperative rectal cancer patients, including their pathophysiology and time course and strategies for prevention and treatment.

Evaluation of sexual function after robot‐assisted radical prostatectomy: A farewell to IIEF questionnaire

“…If a patient needs orgasm by masturbation rather than sexual intercourse, his purpose and goal after RARP is not to preserve full erection but to preserve orgasmic function; therefore, we need to concentrate on preserving the nerve bundles around the apex and urethra rather than the base of the prostate. Taking into account the information regarding sexual dysfunction after colorectal surgery, 90 describing that complications from radical abdominoperineal resection and lower anterior resection can result in sexual dysfunction, specifically including erectile and ejaculatory dysfunction for male patients, and the pathophysiology has not been fully investigated, we must accumulate clinical symptoms and nerve-sparing status not only for prostate surgery but also for other surgeries of pelvic organs.…”