The importance of sexuality, changes in erectile functioning and its association with self-esteem in men with localized prostate cancer: data from an observational study

Age Matters: The Moderating Effect of Age on Styles and Strategies of Coping with Stress and Self-Esteem in Patients with Neoplastic Prostate Hyperplasia

The aim of this study was to analyze coping mechanisms and their psychological aspects during the treatment of neoplastic prostate hyperplasia. We have analyzed strategies and styles of coping with stress and self-esteem of patients diagnosed with neoplastic prostate hyperplasia. A total of 126 patients were included in the study. Standardized psychological questionnaires were used to determine the type of coping strategy by using the Stress Coping Inventory MINI-COPE, while a coping style questionnaire was used to assess the type of coping style by using the Convergence Insufficiency Symptom Survey (CISS). The SES Self-Assessment Scale was used to measure the level of self-esteem. Patients using adaptive strategies of coping with stress in the form of active coping, seeking support and planning had higher self-esteem. However, the use of maladaptive coping strategies in the form of self-blame was found to cause a significant decrease in patients' self-esteem. The study has also shown the choice of a task-based coping style to positively influence one's self-esteem. An analysis related to patients' age and coping methods revealed younger patients, up to 65 years of age, using adaptive strategies of coping with stress to have a higher level of self-esteem than older patients using similar strategies. The results of this study show that older patients, despite the use of adaptation strategies, have lower self-esteem. This group of patients should receive special care both from family and medical staff. The obtained results support the implementation of holistic care for patients, using psychological interventions to improve patients' quality of life. Early psychological consultation and mobilization of patients' personal resources may allow patients to change stress coping methods towards more adaptive forms.

A ‘real-world’ standard for radical prostatectomy: Analysis of the British Association of Urological Surgeons Complex Operations Reports, 2016–2018

Objective:

To produce comprehensive and detailed benchmarking data allowing surgeons and patients to compare practice against, by using all recorded radical prostatectomies across a 3-year period in England.

Patients and methods:

The British Association of Urological Surgeons (BAUS) manages the radical prostatectomy (RP) Complex Operations Database. Surgical departments upload data which they can review and amend before lockdown and data cleansing. Analysis of 2016–2018 data held on the BAUS Complex Operations Database was performed for 21,973 patients undergoing RP in England, producing procedure-specific benchmarking data. General linear models were used to assess differences in patient selection between different operative modalities. Analysis involved assessment of case selection, operative decisions and outcomes, case volume and pathological outcomes.

Results:

Using national Hospital Episode Statistics, the BAUS RP dataset was estimated 91% complete. Median age was 65 and 96% were American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Grades 1–2. Over 80% had RP performed in a high-volume centre (>100 annual RPs) and 88% had Gleason grade group (GGG) ⩾2 disease on biopsy. Robotic-assisted RP (RARP), laparoscopic RP (LRP) and open RP (ORP) were performed in 85%, 7.2% and 7.7% of cases, respectively. Patient and disease characteristics differed across surgical modalities. Transfusion rates were 0.14% in RARP, 0.38% in LRP and 1.8% in ORP. Increased positive surgical margin (PSM) rates were observed with increasing prostate-specific antigen (PSA), GGG and T-stage, with comparable PSM rates across surgical modalities. Lymph node dissection was performed more commonly in high-risk cases (cT3, PSA > 20, GGG ⩾ 4). Pathological upstaging was common. Median length of stay was 1, 2 and 3 days for RARP, LRP and ORP, respectively. ORP had Clavien–Dindo complications ⩾3 and unplanned hospital readmissions.

Conclusion:

This analysis has enabled the first set of UK national RP standards to be produced allowing procedure, patient and disease-specific national, centre and individual comparisons. The present degree of service centralisation, operative modalities, and specific aspects of surgical practice can be observed.

Level of evidence:

2b

Factors influencing self-esteem after radical prostatectomy in older adult patients

Older adult patients with prostate cancer experience symptoms such as uncontrolled sexual and urinary dysfunction after radical prostatectomy, which lowers self-esteem. Lack of access to information about the illness increases uncertainty, requiring interventions from healthcare providers. This study aimed to identify factors affecting the self-esteem of older adult patients who underwent prostate cancer surgery and provided data for establishing nursing strategies to promote healthy lifespans. This cross-sectional study examined participants over 65 years old who underwent radical prostatectomy at two university hospitals in 2017. The results indicated that the most influential factor for self-esteem was inconsistency-related uncertainty, followed by postoperative symptom experience and healthcare provider support. These variables explained 43% of the variance in self-esteem. To improve self-esteem among older adult patients who undergo radical prostatectomy, integrated programs that include sexual-related symptom management, such as erectile dysfunction and incontinence, and healthcare provider support should be developed to reduce inconsistency-related uncertainty.

Men's experiences of sex and intimacy after prostate cancer treatment in China: a qualitative study

Purpose

While the existing knowledge base on the impact of prostate cancer (PC) and its treatment on sexuality and intimacy has been generated from Western populations, there is a lack of such evidence in the Asian context. This study aimed to explore men’s experiences of sex and intimacy after PC treatment in China.

Methods

This study adopted an interpretive descriptive design. Using purposive sampling, 13 PC patients were selected from a urology outpatient unit of a hospital in South China and proceeded with individual semi-structured telephone interviews. Each interview was transcribed verbatim and analyzed using constant comparison analysis.

Results

Four themes emerged from the interview data, including (a) encountering altered sexuality, (b) communication and sexual adjustments, (c) maintenance of quality intimate relationship, and (d) lack of sexual health support.

Conclusions

The findings revealed that PC treatment significantly impaired patients’ sexual functions, and their sexual health needs were mainly unmet by healthcare providers. There is a great need to design culturally relevant interventions to improve sexual health among this population.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00520-021-06720-w.

A systematic review of tools used to assess body image, masculinity and self-esteem in men with prostate cancer

OBJECTIVE

Masculinity, body image and self-esteem are important interlinked factors affecting prostate cancer (PCa) patients' quality of life. The aim of this systematic review was to identify and evaluate all tools measuring these domains in men with PCa.

METHODS

This review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines with a priori protocol registered. Pubmed, Embase, Medline and Psychinfo were searched from inception to May 2020. Studies using a predefined tool which measured any body image, self-esteem or masculinity construct in men with PCa were included, as well as validation studies of these. Reliability, validity and responsiveness of tools identified were objectively evaluated against the COSMIN taxonomy of measurement properties.

RESULTS

From 1416 records screened, a final 46 studies consisting of 17 different tools were included in the systematic review. Seven tools were identified assessing body image, nine masculinity and one self-esteem, varying widely in their number of items, possible responses and domains assessed. Most tools had evaluated internal consistency through Cronbach's alpha analysis; however, structural and discriminative validity, and responsiveness were lacking for many. Additionally, only one tool identified was specifically developed and evaluated in patients with PCa: The Masculinity in Chronic Disease Inventory.

CONCLUSIONS

Numerous tools have been used for the measurement of body image, masculinity and self-esteem in men with PCa. However, few were developed specifically for these patients. More research is therefore needed to ascertain specific factors affecting these outcomes in PCa patients, so valid, reliable and clinically relevant tools can be developed.

Randomized controlled trial of a group intervention combining self-hypnosis and self-care: secondary results on self-esteem, emotional distress and regulation, and mindfulness in post-treatment cancer patients

PURPOSE

Cancer patients often report low self-esteem and high emotional distress. Two factors seem particularly linked to these symptoms: emotion regulation strategies and mindfulness. The interest of hypnosis and self-care to relieve these symptoms is not well documented. Our randomized controlled trial aimed at assessing the effect of a group intervention combining self-hypnosis and self-care on self-esteem, emotional distress, emotion regulation, and mindfulness abilities of post-treatment cancer patients, as well as investigating the links between these variables.

METHODS

One hundred and four patients who had suffered from cancer were randomized into the intervention group (N = 52) and the wait-list control group (N = 52). They had to answer questionnaires before (T1) and after the intervention (T2). Nine men were excluded from the analyses, leading to a final sample of 95 women with cancer. Group-by-time changes were assessed with MANOVA, and associations with self-esteem and emotional distress were investigated with hierarchical linear regression models.

RESULTS

Participants in the intervention group (mean age = 51.65; SD = 12.54) reported better self-esteem, lower emotional distress, a decreased use of maladaptive emotion regulation strategies, and more mindfulness abilities after the intervention, compared to the WLCG. This increase in mindfulness explained 33% of the improvement of self-esteem and 41.6% of the decrease of emotional distress in the intervention group. Self-esteem and emotional distress also predicted each other.

CONCLUSION

Our study showed the efficacy of our hypnosis-based intervention to improve all the investigated variables. Mindfulness predicted the improvement of self-esteem and emotional distress. The primary impact of our intervention on mindfulness abilities seems to explain, at least in part, its efficacy. Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT03144154). Retrospectively registered on the 1st of May, 2017.