Prostate Cancer Treatment

Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Before a decision is made about which prostate cancer treatment is suitable for you a prostate examination must be performed. This is a simple and straightforward procedure that can be conducted in your doctor’s office without the use of medical equipment, urine samples or blood testing.  The necessity for an annual prostate examination increases with your age so it is very important that all men receive regular prostate examinations. Every year an average of 250,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer.

The following are considered to be the main Treatments for Prostate Cancer:

Prostate Cancer Treatment by ‘active surveillance’

“Active Surveillance” is the medical term for keeping an eye on the patient’s cancer, but not taking action until the condition worsens or expands [also referred to as observation or masterly inactivity]. Active Surveillance is usually applied when a patient may not be able to undergo prostate cancer treatment because of complications from other conditions, or is otherwise unable to receive prostate cancer treatment.

Prostate Cancer Treatment by way of a ‘Prostatectomy’

The most radical approach to ending prostate problems and specifically prostate cancer is to remove the entire prostate, a procedure known as a prostatectomy. An incision is made behind the pubic bone and a portion of the prostate or the entire gland itself is removed. The urethra is then connected directly to the bladder. After the prostate is removed, a catheter is placed in the penis to allow urine to exit the body without damaging the area from which the prostate was removed. The main benefit of this surgery procedure is that if the cancer has not spread, it can normally be completely removed and the problem is over.

Prostate Cancer Treatments by way of ‘Radiation Therapy’

Prostatectomy is seen as invasive surgery and an alternative may be radiation therapy. Radiation therapy can treat prostate cancer from the outside. An MRI or CAT scan is used to plot the exact location of the tumor or affected cells followed by intense bursts of x-rays used to destroy the cells. Intensity modulated radiation therapy, or IMRT, is a form of radiation that can be used to full effect on the majority of cancer cells, but can be toned down to lessen the danger to cells in the proximity of the bladder or rectum. The external therapy is administered over a 7 week period, and no anesthesia is required. Regrettably the problems associated with this treatment include approximately one half of all male patients becoming impotent within two years of undergoing the therapy, and side effects of urinary bleeding and burning have been recorded.

Prostate Cancer Treatment by way of ‘Brachytherapy’

Brachytherapy is another form of radiation therapy, albeit one that involves actually inserting objects into the body. Radioactive pellets or seeds are injected into the prostate, and the radiation that they emit kills the cancer-infected cells. After a period of time, the radioactivity of these “seeds” fades, and the leftover pellets are completely harmless. Internal radiation therapy can be accomplished in one visit to the doctor, and it requires a minor amount of anesthesia. Problems associated with Brachytherapy are similar to those recorded for external radiation therapy.

Prostate Cancer Treatment by way of ‘Hormone Therapy’

Another technique is called hormone therapy, and involves restricting the amount of testosterone that the body produces or that is directed to help the prostate gland grow.

The treatment may be one or more of the following:

The effect of testosterone restricted by taking tablets

The release of testosterone eradicated by injections

An orchiectomy – this is the most extreme version of this therapy and is an operation which actually removes the testicles

The reduction of testosterone by taking tablets that contain the female hormone oestrogen

In terms of effectiveness an orchiectomy is successful because it is the testicles that produce 90% of the body’s testosterone. However, as this method involves removing the testicles, most men will opt for an alternative procedure.

Prostate Cancer Treatment by way of ‘Chemotherapy’

As with other forms of cancer, chemotherapy is also an option. However, up until fairly recently, chemotherapy was considered only as an option for men who have stopped responding to other prostate cancer treatments. New studies are being conducted using chemotherapy drugs that have already been approved by the Food and Drug Administration in a new capacity specifically to fight prostate cancer.