A biopsy spotted Joe Boeving''s prostate cancer last October. The Belleville barber was stunned.  "After they found out it was cancer I kind of went in denial I guess. And I wasn''t going to do anything. And my wife was kind of the pusher to do something about it."

Joe ended up coming to Dr. Gerald Andriole at Barnes-Jewish Hospital for laparascopic surgery to remove the prostate. "It is much less invasive, when we take out the prostate we have to transect it right here. All the way around here."

So, traditionally, prostate surgery has requires an incision that starts near the man''s belly button. Right in the middle and goes virtually all the way down to his pubic bone. During laparascopic surgery, surgeons make a small incision near the belly button through which they will remove the prostate.

"In addition to this opening, we have a puncture that''s here, and here, here and here." That usually means less pain and bleeding.

One reason Joe favored laparascopic surgery is that without the large incision, there is less down time and he could get back to work sooner. "I went back to work in two weeks and was bowling in four."

Another big concern during prostate surgery, the nerves and muscles that affect bladder control and sexual function are close to the gland.

A tiny camera used in laparascopic surgery magnifies things 12 times and helps doctors avoid those vital areas. "We''re usually able to get the prostate out without damaging the muscle, without damaging the nerves and if we''re successful, men regain good control and good erections afterwards."

"I have no, no handicaps, no restrictions of any kind. And I''m free of cancer."

After laparoscopic surgery, most men regain bladder control within a matter of weeks, sexual function within a year. About a dozen medical centers in the country offer laparascopic surgery to remove the prostate. This procedure is not for men whose cancer has spread beyond the prostate.