In business, we are always impressed if a company announces big increases in profits. There's something magical when CEOs start talking about millions of dollars as if it was all somehow sucked out of the air. There's never a thought for all us customers who keep paying the higher prices for our goods or services. Only the investors matter and, so long as their expectations as to the dividends are met, all is well with the world. Well, here's another set of figures to chew over. The population of Europe is 731 million, more than double the current population of the US. So, when it comes to the following numbers just divide by 2. Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of death from cancer. There were 382,000 new cases detected last year. This is a rising trend and we can expect more next year with prostate cancer averaging about 12% of all new cancer cases. This reflects a more general trend that more than half the men aged over 50 will report some type of urological problem with the healthcare services budgeting for the need to treat 43 million men with erectile dysfunction by 2025. That's a lot of men but only about 6% of today's population. It will be a smaller percentage when the actual European population is counted in 2025.

Let's put this in context. Europe invests in preventative medicine. It has been screening for prostate cancer. The latest statistics show a 20% reduction in mortality. Evidence like this drives positive health screening for all adults deemed to be at risk. The statistics show early intervention saves lives. Yet, one of the reasons why men have been ducking out of the test program or refusing prostate surgery is the fear of erectile dysfunction. This fear is not unjustified. It only takes the slightest error from the surgeon and a cut with a scalpel goes a fraction too deep. Muscles can never completely recover. Nerves never regenerate. This means many men suffer erectile dysfunction after surgery. Those who are into crunching numbers reckon old age may kill them before the cancer. This might have worked twenty years ago when male life expectancy was inching up into the 70s. Now it is edging up towards the magic 80 years, there's a real risk old age may be blighted by pain from the malignant prostate cancer.

There's been a significant amount of research into the use of Levitra following prostate surgery. In comparative tests, this drug has emerged as more effective than the others in restoring sexual function. This gives you two reasons for hope. Surgical techniques are improving all the time with increasingly accurate cutting. Even if there's some damage, Levitra has a proven track record in clinical trials to bring back erections hard enough for penetration. While nothing in life is ever certain, one statistic should stand out from this article. In Europe, death from prostate cancer has been reduced by 20% through early treatment including surgery. The Europeans, at least, think the risk of surgery going wrong is better than the risk of a pain death from cancer.