Prostate Cancer Treatments
Of the
prostate cancer treatments available, your doctor will recommend the
treatment option that is best for you. The decision will depend on your
overall health and how far advanced your cancer is. If the treatment
recommended for you is not something you're comfortable with, for
instance you may not be comfortable with external beam radiation
therapy; you can give your doctor your opinion. It's important that you
are at ease with the decision. Discuss it with your family as well,
particularly the possible side effects and cure rate.
Oncologists specialize in certain fields. The one you are referred to will be a specialist in the treatment prescribed for you.
Watching and Waiting
The
first strategy in most treatment plans is watching and waiting. The
signs and symptoms that may indicate prostate cancer are also
indications of other problems such as an infection in or close to your
prostate. Watching and waiting is to determine which condition your
symptoms are from.
During this period, blood samples will be
tested for PSA levels and tissue samples may be sent for a
biopsy.Elevated levels of the prostate specific antigen may point to a
less serious medical problem. This is why a tissue sample may be taken;
to verify or to rule out the presence of cancer. Remember that early
treatment usually has a better possibility of cure.
Surgery
Men
who are the best candidates for prostate cancer surgery are the ones
most likely to achieve a successful recovery from the procedure. These
are men with good overall health and who do not have secondary
conditions that may interfere with recovery like heart problems. Surgery
can lead to some serious side effects including incontinence and
impotence.
Radiation
There are 3
different types of radiation therapies. External beam therapy is
typically a stream of X-rays aimed at your pelvis from a device outside
the body. The X-rays burn away cancer cells through repeated treatments
over several weeks.
An alternative external beam therapy is Proton
Beam Therapy. Instead of using X-rays, protons, which are charged
particles or ions, are streamed at your pelvis, again from a device
outside your body.
Brachytherapy is the introduction of several
radioactive seeds directly into your prostate. They are implanted with a
series of injections while you are under a general anesthetic.
All
of the radiation treatments above work on the principle of burning
cancer cells away with high energy particles. Radiation treatment can
take place over time, and is subject to the same side effects as
surgery.
Hormone Therapies
Hormone
therapy is a method of chemical treatment that seeks to alter your
hormone levels to halt or slow the growth of cancer cells. This
procedure is temporary because most patients develop a resistance to the
effectiveness of the injections after about 2 years.
Hormone
therapy is not a cure and is usually recommended when the patient has a
higher stage (T-3 or T-4) of prostate cancer. The idea is to prolong the
patient's life and slow the cancer's growth.
Cryotherapy
Cryotherapy is a procedure where, during surgery, your prostate is frozen and then thawed to destroy cancer cells.
HIFU
High
Intensity Focused Ultrasound uses focused ultrasound to heat and
evaporate diseased tissue out of your prostate. The device is aimed
using an MRI scan and targeted tissue is heated to 80°C. The result is
tissue that can no longer reproduce and so cannot grow any further.
Healthy tissue is spared because the effective area of the ultrasound
pulse is very small and only a few cubic mm at a time can be targeted.
It is done on an out-patient basis and does not affect the quality of
life that some of the other treatments do. HIFU also results in fewer
significant side effects than surgery or radiation. HIFU for prostate
cancer is highly effective and can often be used for recurrent cancer.
This is not an option, however, once the cancer has spread beyond the
prostate.
