Radical prostatectomy is major surgery performed under general or regional anesthesia that removes the entire prostate gland plus some surrounding tissue. During the procedure the pelvic lymph nodes may also be sampled for a biopsy. The goal is to remove the cancer entirely and prevent its spread to other parts of the body.

The radical prostatectomy procedure

Radical prostatectomy is performed under anesthesia and the procedure takes from 1.5 to 4 hours to complete. The patient is either unconscious during the prostatectomy or remains awake but numb below the waist.

In the most common radical prostatectomy procedure, the incision begins below the navel and extends to just above the pubic bone. In a variation of this procedure, a smaller, curved incision is made between the anus and the base of the scrotum; the prostate is then removed from underneath the pubic bone. A nerve sparing radical prostatectomy may be employed in an attempt to preserve the man's erectile function.

After removal of the prostate, the urethra is sewn to the neck of the bladder over a urinary catheter. The catheter is a narrow tube that is passed through the urethra into the bladder. Drains are placed around the site and then the incision is closed.

After surgery, the patient is taken to a surgery recovery room. The catheter is removed 2-3 weeks after the procedure, and dressings are kept on the wounds until they have completely dried up.