Impotence is the inability to obtain and maintain spontaneous erections that are satisfactory for sexual intercourse. Impotence is a common side effect after prostate cancer treatments. New techniques and technologies in treatments, however, are making impotence less common and helping to restore the ability to obtain spontaneous erections. Advancements of the equipment used in brachytherapy and cryotherapy are both examples of how doctors are looking for new ways to decrease the occurrence of impotence after prostate cancer. Nerve-sparing technique in the prostatectomy, which spares the neurovascular nerve bundles that stimulate erections, are also both examples.
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