Australia’s best minds take on major gap in prostate cancer care
In Australia, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men.
Did you know that prostate cancer treatment impacts sex and intimacy? In fact, it’s the most common issue that men with prostate cancer face¹.
A review of research in Australia found up to 58% of men with prostate cancer reported unmet sexual needs. And, alarmingly, those who reported the greatest unmet need were the least likely to seek help for their concerns.
This can have a major impact on men's quality of life, self-esteem, mental health, relationships and sense of manhood.
We’re determined to change this. Here’s how.
World-first guidelines for clinicians
In 2022, Movember worked with international experts to launch the world’s first playbook for clinicians providing sexual healthcare for people with prostate cancer: Clinical Guidelines for Sexual Health and Prostate Cancer.
The guidelines set a new standard of excellence, providing 47 recommendations on how to treat patients and partners using biomedical therapies, psychological intervention and social supports.
But simply creating guidelines doesn't solve the problem. We need to make sure the right people know they exist and can put them to use in their clinic.
Uniting the country’s best minds
In January 2025, we brought together 24 of Australia’s healthcare experts to see how we could get more Australian clinicians to use the guidelines. Because when they do, more men and partners will get the care they need.
In simple terms, the first recommendation in the guidelines states that clinicians should ask the question: “How important is sex and intimacy to you?”
Through an intensive workshop, our nation’s top experts unpacked the reasons why conversations about sexual health weren’t always the norm and brainstormed ideas to get more cancer experts to ‘ask the question’ in Australia. In the room were specialist nurses and nurse practitioners in urology, urologists, general practitioners, sexologists, psychologists, physiotherapists, exercise physiologists, dietitians and academic researchers.
Forming an expert team
The workshop was a key step on our mission to make sexual healthcare a non-negotiable for all clinicians seeing men with prostate cancer and their partners.
But changing healthcare systems takes time. And teamwork. To help us build a long-term action plan, we’re proud to announce our first ever Sexual Health Advisory Group:
- Dr Natasha Roberts, Specialist Nurse & academic researcher, Metro North Health Queensland
- Dr Daniel Brown, Psychologist & academic researcher, La Trobe University, Victoria
- Professor Tina Skinner, Exercise Science & Education Researcher, University of New South Wales
- Associate Professor Darren Katz, Urological & Prosthetic Surgeon, Victoria
- Francesca Rogers, Urology Nurse Practitioner, Western Australia
- Melissa Hadley-Barrett, Nurse Practitioner & Sexologist, Western Australia
- Professor Eric Chung, Urologic Surgeon, Queensland
This expert group will guide Movember's work to boost uptake of the guidelines across Australia.
What this means for men?
We want men and their partners to know that all prostate cancer treatments will lead to changes in their sex life – but there are many ways their care team can support them.
And while we work to influence healthcare settings, we’re also proud to offer free, credible online resources designed for men and their partners.
If you, or someone you know, is navigating prostate cancer and wants to know more about how it impacts sex, check out Movember True North.
[1] Charlick, M., Tiruye, T., Ettridge, K., O’Callaghan, M., Sara, S., Jay, A., & Beckmann, K. (2024). Prostate cancer related sexual dysfunction and barriers to help seeking: A scoping review. Psycho‐Oncology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.9303