Treatments Used for Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer treatments include radiation, hormone therapy, chemotherapy, cryotherapy and surgery. According to the Mayo Clinic, some prostate cancers grow so slowly that treatment may be postponed indefinitely, depending on the patient's age. Considerations for choosing treatment for prostate cancer include overall health, patient age, size and stage of the cancer and whether it has spread beyond the prostate gland.

EBRT

• External beam radiation therapy (EBRT) uses radiation to kill cancer cells and requires a full bladder to help with positioning the body to target the beam at the prostate.

Brachytherapy

• Brachytherapy is the implantation of radioactive "seeds." These contain long-acting radiation that kills cancer cells in the prostate gland.

Hormone therapy

• Hormone therapy uses synthetic hormones that are either injected or taken in pill form to prevent prostate cancer growth by blocking testosterone from the cancer cells.

Prostatectomy

• Prostatectomy is the surgical removal of the prostate gland and lymph nodes in the groin. Side effects include incontinence and impotence.

Cryotherapy

• Cryotherapy uses liquid nitrogen to freeze cancerous tumors of the prostate, but may cause damage to nearby areas such as the colon and bladder.

Chemotherapy

• Chemotherapy is the use of drugs that kill rapidly growing cells, including healthy and cancerous cells. Due to side effects, chemotherapy is used on men whose prostate cancer has metastasized.

Gene therapy

• According to the Mayo Clinic, gene therapy is a potential treatment for prostate cancer and is in experimental use at a few medical centers in the United States.