Correlation of Mindfulness and Erectile Dysfunction in Radiation1 Treatment of Prostate Cancer 1 Avi Hass , Bhupesh Parashar, MD
1Donald
and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell
Background
Methods
In North America, prostate is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men and is responsible for the second highest rate of cancer deaths among men. Approximately half of these men will undergo some form of radiation therapy as part of their treatment. The ProtecT trial demonstrated that of men receiving radiotherapy for prostate cancer, only 22% had preserved full erectile function 6 months after treatment. In fact, men are willing to accept a 10% decrease in overall survival if the inferior treatment regimen would optimize preservation of their erectile function. Concerns related to sexual health and intimacy are cited as one of the unmet needs for prostate cancer survivors. Mindfulness, defined as nonjudgmental, present-moment awareness, and mindfulness-based therapies have been shown to lead to improvement in subjectively evaluated arousal and desire, sexual satisfaction, and a reduction of fear linked with sexual activity, as well as improving consistency between the subjectively perceived arousal and genital response in women. However, more research is needed to explore the potential of mindfulness-based therapies in the treatment of male sexual dysfunction. This study sets out to explore the correlation between trait mindfulness and erectile dysfunction in radiation treatment of prostate cancer.
Patients undergoing treatment at the Department of Radiation Medicine and the Center for Advanced Medicine at LIJ were given 2 surveys to complete at each of their follow up visits following radiation therapy. One survey, The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) 5 Questionnaire is a validated, multidimensional, self-administered investigation that has been found useful in the clinical assessment of erectile dysfunction in clinical trials. The other survey, The Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS), is a 15-item scale designed to assess a core characteristic of mindfulness, namely, a receptive state of mind in which attention, informed by a sensitive awareness of what is occurring in the present simply observes what is taking place. By analyzing these scores at various timepoints following treatment, we hope to investigate the correlation between trait mindfulness and radiation induced erectile dysfunction.
Hypothesis There exists a statistical correlation between selfreported trait mindfulness and erectile dysfunction in men undergoing radiotherapy for prostate cancer.
The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF) 5
The Mindful Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS)
Conclusions/Future Direction Data collection remains underway in this study. Should there exist a relationship between trait mindfulness and erectile dysfunction, it would be prudent to explore mindfulness-based therapies as an effective psychosocial intervention in the management of men receiving radiotherapy for prostate cancer.
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