Prostate cancer care choices were linked to different changes in daily function
In a prospective cohort with low-risk disease, reported function stayed stable under active surveillance, while surgery and radiotherapy were linked to different declines.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
People undergoing active surveillance reported stable function, while those undergoing prostate removal reported meaningful declines in continence and sexual function. Radiotherapy was associated with a different pattern of difficulties. Because this was an observational cohort, the findings describe outcomes after different care choices without proving that those choices alone caused the differences.
The groups were not randomly assigned. The abstract does not explain how differences between patients choosing each option were addressed or report cancer-control outcomes alongside these functional results.
What researchers found
Urinary continence score change after nerve-sparing surgery
EPIC-26 mean change from baseline to 12 months; this exceeded the study's threshold for a clinically important decline.
What patients reported
The questionnaire covered continence, urinary irritation or obstruction, bowel function, sexual function and hormonal symptoms. Researchers compared changes from baseline with thresholds intended to identify changes large enough to matter clinically.
Different patterns of change
Continence remained stable after radiotherapy, but urinary irritation or obstruction, bowel, hormonal and sexual scores declined meaningfully. Active surveillance was associated with stable scores across all measured domains, which describes function rather than cancer control.
The original publication
Patient-reported outcomes: active surveillance vs radical therapies in low-risk prostate cancer.
Al-Nader M, Kesch C, Mahmoud O et al.
BJU Int · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41698790
- Record checked
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