Australian researchers seek men for international prostate cancer study

If only to highlight the importance of correct detection of prostate cancer, Imperial College London recently developed a prosthetic buttocks and rectum for training use of doctors and nurses. The male disease is being given more prominence even if having prostate problems could be embarrassing for many men.

Australian researchers are now challenging males to take part in an international survey with prostate cancer patients as respondents, the Australian Financial Review reports. Griffith University in Queensland, which just got ethics approval for the research, is behind the online Men and Sexual Health – Prostate Cancer study.

The objective of the survey is to develop better ways to help men with the disease that could result in erectile dysfunction. The poll is open to adult Australian, New Zealand, Canadian, Irish and males from other nations who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer, with or without active treatment.

It would take 30 to 40 minutes to complete the online questionnaire – available at www.menandprostatecancer.org - which looks into the impact of the ailment on a man’s sense of masculinity, performance, other sexual aspects and overall quality of life. How many men will respond would be interesting since males generally shun doctors, and the topic is one usually considered embarrassing similar to the experience of undergoing a digital rectal examination for the first time.

The university previously published a pilot study, which had 500 respondents, in Sexual Medicine journal. The research found that after treatment, less than one-third of men seek help for their sexual concerns and one-third plan to consult a doctor in the future.

Early cancer diagnosis is important because men with the disease have a bigger chance for a full recovery without losing their ability to stand up to the occasion, says Margaret Lamprecht whose husband, Len, was diagnosed in 2002, reports The Queensland Times.

The pilot study also found that men who were more emotionally self-reliant and consider sex important to their male identity have stronger intention to seek help if diagnosed with prostate problems. Cancer Queensland and Menzies Health Institute Queensland at Griffith University led the pilot research.

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