Sexual health & prostate cancer: a new e-health tool to promote sexual and mental adjustment in prostate cancer patients

A cancer diagnosis frequently hinders the experience of a healthy sex life. Prostate cancer is an example of that, as it represents a clinically complex condition that is associated with significant changes in sexual functioning and satisfaction. Although the prevalence of sexual difficulties, sexual suffering, relational problems and sexual dissatisfaction is high among this population, there is limited access to specialized care, as it is often considered a secondary treatment dimension. In the context of a multicentric project called “SexHealth & ProstateCancer”, supported by the Horizon Europe Funding Program for Research and Innovation, this study aims to develop an innovative digital psychological intervention tool. This instrument is designed to offer accessible, confidential and affordable care, while meeting the specific needs of patients with prostate cancer. We aim to develop and assess the efficacy of an e-Health tool to support prostate cancer patients throughout their treatment. Based on a cognitive-behavioral approach, this digital psychological tool will seek to promote emotional support and sexual adjustment to the consequences associated with this medical condition. 40 participants will be recruited and randomly assigned to one of two conditions: a) control group; b) experimental group using the e-Health tool during eight weeks while receiving equal synchronous and/or asynchronous support by a clinical psychologist. Data will be collected through self-report measures along with three testing moments (pre-treatment, mid-treatment, and post-treatment). Using group comparisons we expect to find that the developed e-Health tool offers adequate support to men in their psychological and sexual health adjustments with prostate cancer treatment. Therefore, outcomes are expected to demonstrate the efficacy of the intervention program to support its availability to patients facing the same challenging life experience in the future. This project will potentially represent a strong contributor to mental and sexual health support in prostate cancer patients. All the authors declare no known conflict of interest. This project is funded by Horizonte Europa (NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000057), via the Support System for Scientific and Tecnological Research NORTE-45-2020-75, CCDRN.