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Genetics tied to development of erectile dysfunction in prostate cancer patients

Category: Prostate

In the upcoming edition of the Journal of Radiation Oncology 'Biology 'Physics, an international publication, medical experts detail the 12 genetic markers they've discovered that result in sexual dysfunction for males treated with radiation after receiving an affirmative blood test for prostate cancer.

Researchers from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University pinpointed these markers after comparing tests of hundreds of patients who had undergone radiotherapy for prostate cancer, which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports kills almost 30,000 men annually.

"Thankfully, current treatments for prostate cancer offer excellent rates of long-term survival," said Barry Rosenstien, a professor of radiation oncology at Mount Sinai. "However, the risk of developing erectile dysfunction after radiation treatment is highly variable, suggesting there may be a genetic component to determining that risk."

The scientists hope these findings will help future physicians predict when individuals who take a blood test detecting prostate cancer could develop erectile dysfunction from radiotherapy and arrange treatments accordingly.

The CDC states that symptoms that could indicate the presence of prostate cancer include irregular urination, pain or bleeding during urination and pain during ejaculation.