Prostate cancer, the most common type of cancer in men over age 50, affects around 219,000 American men each year, the Merck Manual reported in 2007. The risk of prostate cancer increases with age, and one in six men will experience prostate cancer in his lifetime. Radical prostatectomy, removal of the prostate, seminal vesicles and nearby lymph nodes, is often recommended for men under age 70. Radical prostatectomy can cause a number of complications, some temporary and some permanent.
Urinary Complications
After radical prostatectomy, a urinary catheter is left in place for several weeks to drain urine while the surgical area heals. After catheter removal, total incontinence commonly occurs for a short time. Around 35 percent of men experience leakage when straining or lifting, according to FamilyDoctor.org. Urinary control can take time to recover, but 90 percent recover completely by one year and 95 percent by two years, according to the University of California Los Angeles. Narrowing of the urethra, the tube that carries urine from the bladder, affects around 7 to 20 percent of men. Strictures can cause difficulty urinating and dribbling of urine.
Erectile Dysfunction
Nerve sparing radical prostatectomy may decrease the chance of erectile dysfunction after surgery, but between 30 and 100 percent of men, depending on age at the time of surgery, experience erectile difficulty after surgery, the Merck Manual reports. Feelings in the penis and during orgasm are not affected. Devices to help maintain an erection help men to have sexual intercourse. If nerves are spared, around 40 to 60 percent of men will still be able to have an erection, although it may take up to 12 to 18 months to regain full function.
Infertility
After removal of the seminal vesicle, men can no longer father children. No fluid is ejaculated during orgasm, because the seminal vesicle and prostate produce fluid. The vas deferens, the tube that carries sperm, is blocked off so that sperm can't exit the penis. Storing a sperm sample before surgery to be used after prostatectomy in conjunction with in vitro fertilization allows men to become fathers if they desire, Dr. William Catalona of the Urological Research Foundation explains.
Rectal Injury
Around 1 to 2 percent of men suffer injury to the rectum during radical prostatectomy, the Merck Manual reports. Injury to the rectum can cause bowel incontinence, an inability to control bowel movements.
