Men's experiences of the impact of penile cancer surgery on their lives: A qualitative study

Törnävä, Minna; Harju, Eeva; Vasarainen, Hanna; Pakarainen, Tomi; Perttilä, Ilkka; Kaipia, Antti

doi:10.1111/ecc.13548

Cited by 10 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Consequently, men after PeCa surgery have reported changes such as diminished sexual and urinary function, anxiety, depression, and alterations of body image and sexuality. [118][119][120][121][122][123][124][125][126] Multiple studies have shown that changes in appearance of the penis after surgery can diminish self-esteem and a…”

Section: Treatments Of Mental Health Complications Of Patients With Pecamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Health Psychology Research sense of masculinity. 120,127 Because the penis is an integral part of a man's identity and sexuality, PeCa patients with significant penis tissue removal after surgery could consider reconstructive surgery to restore appearance, function, and build back self-esteem. In fact, it has been shown that PeCa patients who underwent reconstructive penis-sparing surgery had preserved penile appearance, maintained urinary and sexual function, and favorable HRQoL assessment scores.…”

Section: Mental Health In Urologic Oncologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Surprise at the impact of surgery and subsequent shame postprocedure can be mitigated through open discussion with supportive peers and therapists. 120 Sharing experiences with positive thinking (joy and humor) in a group discussion setting with other post-surgical PeCa patients has been seen to facilitate men's feelings and increase confidence as well as empowerment of self. 120 Having a sexual health therapist is another form of support for PeCa patients to provide solutions and advice for facilitating pleasurable sex with their partners.…”

Section: Mental Health In Urologic Oncologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…120 Sharing experiences with positive thinking (joy and humor) in a group discussion setting with other post-surgical PeCa patients has been seen to facilitate men's feelings and increase confidence as well as empowerment of self. 120 Having a sexual health therapist is another form of support for PeCa patients to provide solutions and advice for facilitating pleasurable sex with their partners. 120 In our review, there is no standardized treatment plan for post-surgical PeCa patients due to diverse outcomes and individual differences.…”

Section: Mental Health In Urologic Oncologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…120 Having a sexual health therapist is another form of support for PeCa patients to provide solutions and advice for facilitating pleasurable sex with their partners. 120 In our review, there is no standardized treatment plan for post-surgical PeCa patients due to diverse outcomes and individual differences. However, because the penis is crucial to a man's sexuality and identity in interpersonal relationships, a combination of genital-sparing procedures with psychological support from peers or therapists can have a positive impact on a patient's mental health and post-operative outcomes.…”

Section: Mental Health In Urologic Oncologymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Mental Health in Urologic Oncology

Anderson

Razzak

McDonald

et al. 2022

Health Psychology Research

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This article is a systematic review of mental health in urologic oncology patients with prostate cancer (PCa), bladder cancer (BC), renal cell carcinoma (RCC), testicular cancer (TC), or penile cancer (PeCa). For all pathologies, a focus on increasing quality of life post-treatment demonstrated a positive impact in reducing Mental Health Illness (MHI) prevalence. Cancer specific mental health care may be given to patients to reduce suicide risk in BC patients and sexual identify and masculinity counseling may improve mental health for TC or PeCa patients. In order to better accommodate patient’s mental health needs when undergoing GU cancer treatment, we recommend incorporation of mental health metrics such as questionnaires to assess early treatment of MHI, a greater emphasis on psychosocial support with the patient’s loved ones, peers, and healthcare team, alongside advising healthy habits such as exercise which has been shown to drastically reduce MHI incidence across all pathologies. We hope that these measures conducted by urologists and oncologists, alongside possible coordination with psychiatrists and psychologists for psychotherapy, psychopharmacology, and neuro-stimulation treatment modems may be helpful in the long term to reduce MHI incidence in urology oncology patients. Given the higher incidence of MHI in oncology patients and in the patient population after the Covid-19 pandemic, MHI awareness in the sphere of urologic oncologic treatment continues to be crucial when creating a collaborative treatment platform for patients.

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