erectile dysfunction and penile bulb dose following definitive prostate radiation therapy

Background: erectile dysfunction (ed) is a common side effect of prostate cancer treatment, affecting up to 50% of patients after radiation therapy. objectives: this study aims to analyze the correlation between the dose received by the penile bulb (pb) and ed in men who underwent definitive radiation therapy for early-stage prostate cancer without androgen deprivation therapy. methods: the study included 40 patients who received 3d conformal radiation therapy (3d-crt) for localized prostate cancer and were reported to be potent before treatment, as determined by the international index of erectile function (iief-15) questionnaire. the dose to the pb was measured using dose volume histograms (dvhs), and the iief-15 questionnaire was completed again 3 months after 3d-crt. the pearson correlation coefficient and linear regression test were used to examine the correlation between the ed score and pb doses. statistical significance was considered if the p value was less than 0.05. results: the mean age of the patients was 75.5 ± 5.70 years. the average ed score based on the questionnaire was 15 ± 10.55. twenty percent of the patients had moderate ed, while 80% had mild ed (all patients reported a decrease in potency after 3d-crt). however, the correlation between the ed score and the pb mean dose was not statistically significant. conclusions: this study revealed ed in all prostate cancer patients after 3d-crt, but no significant correlation was found between the dose received by the pb and radiotherapy-induced impotence.