Brachytherapy: is it really “better” as a first-line treatment for low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer?

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Sitemaster

An analysis of data on treatment of nearly 137,500 men treated for prostate cancer between 1991 and 2007 has suggested that permanent seed brachytherapy may be safer, less costly, and at least as effective as any other widely available form of first-line therapy for men with low- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer.

Filed under: Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Magnesium oxide and prostate movement during radiation therapy

Posted on December 24, 2011 by Sitemaster

It has previously been proposed by some researchers that daily dosing with magnesium oxide (MgO) — alone or as part of an antiflatulent dietary regimen — can be used to reduce prostate motion (in combination with fiducial markers) during external beam radiation therapy for localized prostate cancer.

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Who needs aggressive treatment after initial radiation … and who does not?

Posted on November 24, 2011 by Sitemaster

A new report in Lancet Oncology offers guidance on which patients with prostate cancer who are initially treated with radiotherapy and 6 months of neoadjuvant androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) are at relatively high and relatively low levels of risk for prostate cancer-specific mortality.

Filed under: Diagnosis, Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Risk, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Survey suggests high level of long-term side effects after treatment for prostate cancer

Posted on October 28, 2011 by Sitemaster

According to new data presented at the Frontiers in Cancer Prevention Research meeting ongoing this week in Boston, MA, some 70 percent of prostate cancer patients participating in a survey in Michigan reported long-term, treatment-related, adverse effects after first-line treatment with surgery or radiation therapy.

Filed under: Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , | 6 Comments »

ProstAtak, Theragene, and the evolution of “vaccine-like” therapies for prostate cancer

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Sitemaster

In May this year we initially commented on a media announcement about a new form of vaccine-like therapy that was entering Phase III clinical trials for the first-line treatment of intermediate- and high-risk prostate cancer.

Filed under: Drugs in development | Tagged: , , , | 2 Comments »

Immediate adjuvant therapy for men with positive surgical margins after RP

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Sitemaster

There are no absolute guidelines as to which patients who have positive surgical margins after a radical prostatectomy (RP) are most appropriate for immediate adjuvant radiation therapy (with or without neoadjuvant and/or adjuvant hormone therapy).

Filed under: Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , , | 3 Comments »

Utilization of standard treatments for localized prostate cancer by Medicare beneficiaries

Posted on July 27, 2011 by Sitemaster

In a new paper just published on-line in the Journal of Urology, Kapoor et al. have provided data on trends in the utilization of various major types of treatment for the management of localized prostate cancer among Medicare beneficiaries in the USA between 2006 and 2008.

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Impact of ADT on all-cause mortality in men treated with brachytherapy-based radiation therapy

Posted on July 19, 2011 by Sitemaster

The addition of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) to radiation therapy for men with localized prostate cancer is common. It may be used to reduce the size of the prostate prior to brachytherapy or for longer periods in men with higher risk disease to extend survival (which has been demonstrated in large-scale, randomized, multi-center clinical trials).

Filed under: Diagnosis, Management, Risk, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Toxic side effects of adjuvant, salvage IMRT post-surgery

Posted on July 1, 2011 by Sitemaster

Prostate cancer patients are commonly concerned about the potential risks for side effects associated with adjuvant and salvage radiation therapy after a preceding, first-line, radical prostatectomy.

Filed under: Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

Is radiation therapy any better than active surveillance for localized prostate cancer?

Posted on June 13, 2011 by Sitemaster

An updated, systematic review just published in Annals of Internal Medicine states that it is impossible to come to any conclusions about the efficacy of radiation therapy compared with active surveillance or watchful  waiting for the management of localized prostate cancer because of the absence of any high-quality, comparative data.

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What different specialists believe about adjuvant radiation therapy

Posted on June 13, 2011 by Sitemaster

A recent study published in “The Red Journal” suggests (perhaps not surprisingly) that radiation oncologists and urologists have different mindsets about the application of immediate adjuvant radiation therapy following surgery for prostate cancer patients with a variety of adverse pathologic risk factors.

Filed under: Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , | 7 Comments »

The effectiveness of salvage surgery for radiation-recurrent prostate cancer

Posted on April 12, 2011 by Sitemaster

Knowledge of the effectiveness and safety of radical prostatectomy as salvage treatment for men with biochemical recurrence after first-line radiation therapy has long been hampered by the fact that most data are based on small series of patients from individual institutions.

Filed under: Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , | 1 Comment »

Post-op pelvic anatomy after RALP and open surgery

Posted on April 11, 2011 by Sitemaster

According to an article by Hirsch et al. in the inaugural issue of Practical Radiation Oncology (a new journal for radiation oncologists and their staff), there are some small but significant post-operative differences in pelvic anatomy between patients who undergo robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP) as opposed to standard, open forms of radical prostatectomy.

Filed under: Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

6 months of neoadjuvant ADT doubles survival when given with radiation therapy

Posted on March 25, 2011 by Sitemaster

A new article in Lancet Oncology has reported that a mere 6 months of neoadjuvant hormone therapy, when combined with radiation therapy, cuts the risk of dying from locally advanced prostate cancer by 50 percent compared to radiation alone at 10 years of follow-up.

Filed under: Diagnosis, Living with Prostate Cancer, Management, Treatment | Tagged: , , , , , , | 12 Comments »

Salvage cryotherapy as second-line treatment after first-line radiation therapy

Posted on February 10, 2011 by Sitemaster

We really have no idea what the “best” way is to treat men with progressive disease after first-line radiation therapy.

Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: , , , , | 3 Comments »

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