Role of regenerative therapies on erectile dysfunction after radical prostatectomy

• Published in: International journal of impotence research Vol. 33; no. 4; pp. 488 - 496
• Main Authors: Hansen, S. T., Lund, M., Ostergaard, L. D., Lund, L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.05.2021; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 692/699; 692/699/2732/515; Animals; Cancer surgery; Care and treatment; Clinical outcomes; Clinical trials; Complications and side effects; Erectile dysfunction; Erectile Dysfunction - etiology; Erectile Dysfunction - therapy; Humans; Impotence; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Mens health; Methods; Penile Erection; Penis; Prostate; Prostate cancer; Prostatectomy; Prostatectomy - adverse effects; Regenerative medicine; Reproductive Medicine; Review Article; Risk factors; rology; Stem cells; Tissue engineering; Transplantation; Urological surgery; Urology; Denmark
• ISSN: 0955-9930; 1476-5489
• DOI: 10.1038/s41443-020-00406-3

The present study provides a review of stem cell therapy as a treatment of erectile dysfunction from peer-reviewed human and animal trials. A literature search was conducted in PubMed-Medline, Scopus, Embase, and Cochrane databases. Tweenty-three animal studies and seven human studies in the period from 1st of January 2000 to 1st of Mai 2020 were included. The seven included human studies are primary phase one trials, and most of them treat erectile dysfunction following radical prostatectomy by injection of stem cells into the corpus cavernosum. The primary outcome measure in all human trials is safety and secondary can stem cells play a role in the recovery of erectile function. All studies conclude that it is safe to use stem cells and the majority of the studies demonstrate an improvement in erectile function. The results from both animal and human trials are promising for stem cells as a restorative treatment, but data from large randomized human phase two trials is missing before it can be concluded, that stem cells is an effective treatment for erectile dysfunction in humans.