Why it's done

Most often, prostatectomy is done to treat localized prostate cancer. It may be used alone, or in conjunction with radiation, chemotherapy and hormone therapy.

Radical prostatectomy is surgery to remove the entire prostate gland and surrounding lymph nodes to treat men with localized prostate cancer. A surgeon can perform a radical prostatectomy using different techniques, including:

• Robot-assisted radical prostatectomy. The surgeon makes five to six small incisions in your lower abdomen to remove the prostate. He or she sits at a console, using instruments attached to a computer-assisted mechanical device (robot). The robotic device allows a more precise response to movement of the surgeon's hands.
• Open radical prostatectomy. The surgeon typically makes an incision in your lower abdomen to remove the prostate.

Less often, simple prostatectomy may be recommended for men with severe urinary symptoms and very enlarged prostate glands. Enlarged prostate glands are known as benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH.

Simple prostatectomy is usually performed as a minimally invasive procedure with robotic assistance. It's not often done as an open procedure anymore.

Simple prostatectomy to treat BPH doesn't always involve removing the entire prostate, as in a radical prostatectomy. Instead, this procedure removes just the part of the prostate that's blocking the flow of urine. The surgery eases urinary symptoms and complications resulting from blocked urine flow, including:

• A frequent, urgent need to urinate
• Difficulty starting urination
• Slow (prolonged) urination
• Increased urination frequency at night
• Stopping and starting again while urinating
• The feeling that you can't completely empty your bladder
• Urinary tract infections
• Inability to urinate

Your surgical team will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each technique, as well as your preferences, to determine which approach is best for you.