One Man’s Grueling Ordeal with Peyronie’s Disease

by Jim Larkins

There was a time when Mike McKown enjoyed a very active sex life. That all changed though, when his penis began taking on an extreme curve. Intercourse went from uncomfortable to painful; so putting modesty to the side, Mike took his twisted piston to his family doctor. The diagnosis was the easy part — Mike had fallen victim to Peyronie’s disease or curvature of the penis.

Unfortunately, the decision to seek medical advice was the first leg of a nightmarish journey that included misdiagnosis, misinformation and physical disfigurement at the hands of inexperienced medical professionals.

Now, six years later, with a penis pump implant, a penis that’s a fraction of its original size and immeasurable psychological damage, Mike has become a poster victim for all that can go wrong with misunderstood disorders such as Peyronie’s. Mike shares intimate details of his long-term ordeal:

What do you think was the cause of your disorder?

I really don’t know. It just showed up one day. I didn’t even notice at first, and then when it became obvious I went to a urologist.

Was there an inability to get an erection?

No, but of course the pain slowed my sex life down because it didn’t feel good anymore.

What was the outcome when you finally had the implant surgery?

The surgeon did the implant and it was worse than when it started. It was going sideways in different places and it just wasn’t natural. I asked him prior to the surgery, am I going to lose any size and he said ‘maybe a half an inch at the most in length, but in circumference, it shouldn’t make any difference.’ Well, he cut it down so that the diameter was about half what it was before, and I lost about two inches in length.

Overall, are you better off than when you first developed Peyronie’s?

I really am better off now, because I don’t have the curvature.

Is there any premature ejaculation or inability to get an erection now?

No, there’s no premature ejaculation, and there’s no problem getting an erection, because I make it mechanically. It won’t become erect by itself. There are three balls down there now including the mechanical ball and if you hit the wrong one you’ll know about it.

What is the name of the association you’ve formed, and what have you accomplished through the organization?

It’s the Association of Peyronie’s Disease Advocates (APDA). I found out there were a lot of other men who were trying to get something done about Peyronie’s disease but nobody could find doctors. So building this nonprofit organization has helped me to educate other victims so they wouldn’t have to go through what I did.