I write this to help other men. If you have been recently diagnosed with prostate cancer or have a loved one who has, please read on and share with your family. It is a scary diagnosis, but early detection and medical advances in treatment offer great hope for a long and relatively normal life. However, if you hear the words Cryotherapy, Cryosurgery or Cryoablation from your Doctor, get up and look for another Doctor. Cryotherapy is very attractive to patients with localized prostate cancer, vs. radical prostatectomy, radiation, radioactive seed implants and other treatment methods. Cryoablation is sold as a simple, out-patient procedure where under general or epidural anesthesia, needles are inserted into the prostate through the perineum to freeze the prostate and select surrounding nerves to kill the cancer cells. http://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostatecancer/detailedguide/prostate-cancer-treating-cryosurgery http://endocareprostate.com/cryotherapy?gclid=CjwKEAjw8bO3BRDp0bP_vL7_lASJACL_d6wRESwkho40ofd5_ToEirhenpvM_AEo05cRFdaf3a2CRoCWETw_wcB http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/healthlibrary/test_procedures/urology/cryotherapy_for_prostate_conditions_92,P09351/ But, this attractive procedure has many, many downsides! Among these are that it doesn’t remove the cancerous prostate. Targeting specific, microscopic cancer cells with needles and freezing is unrealistic and urinary and sexual performance side effects can be huge. In my case, I was diagnosed with a PSA of 4.0, and a Gleason score of 3+3 in May, 2013 and had the cryosurgery in August, 2013 and the cancer was limited to one section of the prostate. Immediately after the surgery I could not urinate and had to wear a Foley catheter and carry a urine bag for months. The urinary retention continued (meaning I have a blockage caused by the cryotherapy) after the cryosurgery and now need to self-catheter to urinate and do so no less than 6 times per day. Sexual function is totally gone and the only way to get an erection is by injecting Trimix (a mix of erection aiding drugs) right into the penis. After cryosurgery my PSA went down from 4.0 to a low of 0.7. However, in May, 2015 the cancer came back with a PSA of 4.0, a Gleason score of 4+3=7 and it has spread to other parts of my now very small and undefined prostate (due to the effects of the cryoablation). At that time my doctors were concerned that the cancer had metastasized. Thank God all bone scans and MRI’s were negative. My new Doctors at a major, world renowned cancer hospital told me that I should have never had cryosurgery, that they see cancer recurrence, urinary and sexual problems after the treatment all of the time after patient have cryotherapy. They also have little data as to expected and advisable PSA levels after cryoablation,. Moreover, other treatments, such as then a prostatectomy are not available as the cryoablation can make the prostate stick to the rectum and make it them impossible to remove. I am very fortunate that they prescribed external beam radiation treatments which I had in October-November, 2015 along with hormone therapy consisting of a Lupron injection every 3 months. I have now had my third injection (plan to stay on Lupron for 1 year to 18 months) and and my PSA is now down to 0.04 after radiation and 6 months of hormone therapy with Lupron. So consider all of your options carefully, talk to your Doctor, get a second and even third opinion before you have treatment. I think you will find that most urologist and oncologists will advise you to stay away from the treatment known as cryotherapy, cryosurgery or cryoablation.