Patient-reported Quality of Life (QOL) in Unfavorable-Risk Prostate Cancer: Sexual Function Recovery after External Beam Radiation (RT) and 6 months of Androgen Deprivation

Abstract

Materials/Methods: One hundred men with high-risk prostate cancer received RT to 72 Gy with rectal balloon placement for prostate immobilization. Patients received combined androgen blockade for a total of 6 months. Patients completed the validated Prostate Cancer Symptom Indices (PCSI), measuring sexual, urinary, and bowel QOL at baseline (pretreatment) and 6, 12, 18, 24, 30 and 36 months after treatment completion. Sexual Dysfunction is scored from 0 (no dysfunction) to 100 (maximum dysfunction) on the PCSI. Scores are translated into ‘normal’ (no symptoms), ‘intermediate’ (symptoms but useful function) and ‘poor’ (no useful function) levels of sexual function to facilitate interpretation of QOL results, as previously validated. Men with normal or intermediate function have ‘useful’ sexual function, while those with poor function have ‘no useful’ function.