So it’s been three years since my radical prostatectomy.  How am I doing? 

Status

PSA remains undetectable.

Incontinence

The stress incontinence is still present.  Having a cold certainly doesn’t help with it, as I mentioned in the Month 38 update.

Sleeping through the night without having to run to the bathroom is still pretty much the norm for me, aside from an occasional night where there might be a couple of trips to the bathroom.

I’ll admit that I need to be more diligent about doing my Kegel exercises throughout the day, and that may make some improvement.

On a related note, I find it interesting that, sometimes when I run the water to wash dishes, the sound of the running water causes a great urgency for me to run to the bathroom.  It doesn’t happen every time, and typically when it does, I really had no urge to urinate prior to that.  Odd.

Sexual Function

Remember that they took one of my nerve bundles, but I have to admit that I’m pleased with my progress without the use of a pill, slow as it has been.

I can’t pop a boner like I could when I was 18–with just a simple thought about sex.  Some physical stimulation is needed to get the blood flowing.  Once it does, I’d say that I’m now in the 80% – 90% full erection range, which is an improvement.  (And pretty good for one nerve bundle and no Cialis.)

A fellow patient and blog reader reported it took him about 18 months to get to full erection with two nerve bundles, so our advice would be: Be patient, especially if you keep seeing improvements, however small.  If there’s no sign of improvement, talk to your urologist.

Orgasms for me are pretty much the same as they were pre-surgery, although perhaps just a tad less intense.

Summary

Overall, I’m pleased with where I’m at–cancer-free and pretty much back to normal functioning with minimal inconveniences.