Prostate Cancer Surgery Breakthrough Offers Hope for Erectile Function
A groundbreaking prostate cancer surgery, known as the NeuroSafe procedure, has been shown to nearly double the chances of men retaining erectile function compared to traditional surgery, according to a major UK trial.The procedure, tested in five UK hospitals, allows surgeons to remove the prostate while preserving the nerve-containing outer layer, which is crucial for erectile function. During surgery, doctors examine frozen prostate tissue to ensure the cancer has been fully removed. If no cancer is detected in the outer layer, the nerves can remain intact, significantly reducing the risk of erectile dysfunction.
The clinical trial involved 344 men with prostate cancer, none of whom had previous erectile dysfunction. A year post-surgery:
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56% of men who underwent standard surgery experienced severe erectile dysfunction, compared to 38% in the NeuroSafe group.
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Only 23% of standard surgery patients retained normal or mild erectile function, whereas 39% of NeuroSafe patients did.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in England, with 50,000 new cases annually and nearly 1.5 million cases worldwide. The disease is often diagnosed late, making treatment more complex.
Dr. Matthew Hobbs, Director of Research at Prostate Cancer UK, called the study promising but emphasized the need for further research to confirm whether NeuroSafe is as effective as standard surgery in completely removing cancer. He also highlighted the challenge of scaling the technique across the NHS to benefit more patients.
The findings were presented at the 2025 European Association of Urology Congress in Madrid and published in The Lancet Oncology.
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