Psychosocial Barriers and Enablers for Prostate Cancer Patients in Starting a Relationship

Abstract

Single prostate cancer (PCa) patients may face difficulties in starting a new relationship for various reasons. Here, we studied barriers and enablers to starting a relationship for PCa patients and characteristics of patients who were and were not in a relationship. PCa organizations distributed for us a 20-minute online survey, consisting of validated questionnaires (on treatment side effects, loneliness, social provision, and shyness) and questions on factors identified by patients as barriers and enablers to forming a new relationship. Participants were either single [n = 20] or had started a new relationship post-diagnosis [non-single, n = 15]. Three factors—confidence, sexual function, finding the right person—were perceived of as factors that can affect starting a relationship. Fourteen of twenty single patients were confident that they could find a partner and sixteen were comfortable in disclosing their cancer diagnosis to a potential partner. Non-single patients met their partners through various ways, including online dating and social events. They all revealed their cancer status prior to starting the relationship, and most partners reacted well to this disclosure. Single patients were lacking emotional support, more shy, and lonelier than non-single patients. Clinicians need to consider biopsychosocial factors when advising single patients who wish to start a new relationship.

Acknowledgement

Sandra Mathew was supported by the Dr. Elspeth Gold Scholarship in Men’s Health Summer Scholarship, awarded through the Division of Health Sciences, University of Otago.

Additional funding for the project was from the Department of Anatomy at the University of Otago to Dr. Erik Wibowo. We thank Prostate Cancer Foundation New Zealand and their support groups, PCa International, Prostate Cancer Mailing List for helping us post our survey. We thank John Robinson and Richard Wassersug for critical feedback on the manuscript prior to submission.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

Research data are not shared.