SIR STIRLING MOSS, as fearless off the track as he was on it, told the public yesterday what most men would be reluctant to tell their best friends.

After a prostate operation in 2001, the former racing driver, now 75, suffered from impo- tence. He consulted his doctor, was successfully prescribed the erectile dysfunction drug Levitra, and now wants millions of other men to benefit likewise.

Sir Stirling is the first major public figure in Britain to come out about a condition that affects 50 per cent of men over 50. He will front a campaign that is being financed by GlaxoSmith Kline and Bayer HealthCare, promoting drug treatment for erectile dysfunction.

Sir Stirling related his two brushes with the condition that men dread. “The first time was after my shunt at Goodwood in 1962,” he said. “I didn’t consult a doctor, but I met a cute nurse, who said, ‘Don’t worry, it’ll all be all right’. And it was.”

The second time was after his prostate operation. Erectile dysfunction is a common consequence of such surgery. Sir Stirling went straight to his doctor. He was prescribed Viagra, which proved unsuccessful, then switched to Levitra, which worked. “If you were having trouble passing water, you would go straight to the doctor,” he said. “Why not do the same with erectile problems?”

The campaign is called “SortED in 10”, emphasising that it takes only a ten-minute consultation with a GP to be prescribed one of the three available ED (erectile dysfunction) drugs: Viagra, Cialis or Levitra. In addition, Sir Stirling said, Levitra takes only ten minutes to have an effect.

“I can’t understand why men can’t go to the doctor,” he said. “If you can’t get an erection, that’s pretty damned important. I’m 75 and I enjoy sex.”

Sir Stirling has been married three times, for the past 25 years to Susie, 52. Lady Moss is proud of her husband’s decision to go public (Anna Patty writes). She wishes only that other men were as open. “Because neither of us is embarrassed about it, brave is not the right word to describe what my husband is doing.”

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