I had Prostate surgery via the de-vinchi method June 1, 2009. I liked my speed of recovery. I have not had an erection since surgery. Is this normal and could I still become sexualy active in time? I was given a prescription and used one pill with no results. Any suggestions?

First, it is still early and men can still get some recovery out to 24 months. However, I think you may be making a major mistake. You say that you were given a pill, but you did not tell me what pill. I suspect this was Viagra, Cialis or Levitra. The standard approach is to take one of these every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Even if you notice no reaction at first, these drugs can stimulate recovery. This is your best option to recovery sexual function. If this does not work, the next option would be one of the drugs you can inject into your penis. These can work in up to 80% of men. If that does not work, you can have a prosthesis placed in your penis to mechanically create an erection. While this sounds drastic, my patients who have done this have been, on the whole, very happy.

Ask Dr. Espinosa

Geo Espinosa, N.D., L.Ac, CNS, RH (AHG) is the Director of the Integrative Urological Center at New York University Langone Medical Center. Before joining NYU, Dr. Espinosa was a clinician, researcher and director of clinical trials at the Center for Holistic Urology at Columbia University Medical Center. He is a licensed naturopathic doctor, licensed acupuncturist, a Certified Nutrition Specialist and a Registered Herbalist. Dr. Espinosa is an author of the naturopathic entry in 1000 Cures for 200 ailments, by Harper Collins; March 2007 and “Prostate cancer – Nutrients that may slow its progression,” Food and Nutrients in Disease Management - Maryland: Cadmus Publishing, 2009.

Ask Dr. Myers

Medical oncologist and prostate cancer survivor, Dr Charles "Snuffy" Myers was a key player in creating AZT, Suranim, and Phenylacetate while working at the National Institute of Health. With over 250 research papers published, Myers is one of the leading developers of today's prostate cancer canon on both the research and treatment side of the test tube. Former Cancer Director at the University of Virginia, Myers opened the American Institute for Diseases of the Prostate in 2002 to provide men with the kind of comprehensive care that saved his own life. Dr. Myers has long been popular among prostate cancer patients as a speaker because of his ability to explain science and medicine in easy-to-understand language.

Ask Dr. Latini

Dr. Latini welcomes your questions about the psycho-social dimensions of Prostate Cancer, particularly those presented by Gay and Bisexual men. Dr. Latini is an assistant professor of urology at Baylor College of Medicine. Before joining Baylor, he spent six years in the Department of Urology at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Latini is a clinical health psychologist whose work concentrates on cancer survivorship and symptom management for persons living with genitourinary cancer.