Initiative to Minimize Disparities in Postoperative Prostate Cancer Care

When detected early and managed with appropriate surgical treatment, such as radical prostatectomy, Prostate cancer prognosis is excellent, but recovery may be associated with significant transient impact on quality of life. This impact most often manifests in urinary domains, specifically, development of stress urinary incontinence. Several simple, low-cost but high-yield interventions may dramatically improve patient's postoperative quality of life. However, such interventions may be out of reach for patients from Health Enterprise Zones (HEZ) with limited funds. To make resources readily available for this patient population, the inclusion criteria will be prostatectomy patients of any age who reside within the designated North Broad street HEZ.

Stress urinary incontinence after prostatectomy is a source of major distress. Incontinence tends to improve over time with most patients regaining their urinary function. Symptomatic support with disposable absorbent pads/diapers for several months helps men effectively manage this side effect. While for most men the cost of the diapers is manageable, for men in HEZ this represents a significant financial burden on the patient and on caregivers. As a result, these patients often choose to remain home bound until they recover urinary control, preventing them from early return to employment and resulting in social isolation. The Healthcare Disparity SEED Grant will provide up to a 6-month supply of disposable absorbent pads/diapers to those patients meeting our inclusion criteria. Michigan Incontinence Symptom Index (M-ISI) questionnaires will be distributed to patients pre-operatively and during interval post-operative office visits to assess patient satisfaction with voiding function.

In addition to distributing M-ISI questionnaires, we will also distribute the Extended Prostate Cancer Index Composite for Clinical Practice (EPIC-CP) to evaluate overall quality of life. This is a validated questionnaire capable of accurately assessing multiple domains of quality of life after prostate cancer treatment. Results of M-ISI and EPIC-CP scores will be compiled and analyzed to determine if intervention has resulted in measurable improvement between the treatment and control groups.