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Treatments for Prostrate Cancer

There are a number of different treatments available for prostate cancer. Treatments include surgery, radiation, hormone therapy and watchful waiting accompanied by medical testing. The appropriate treatment method depends on the age of the patient, the aggressiveness of the cancer and how far the cancer has spread.

  1. Surgery & Surgical Alternatives

    • The best option for treating most prostate cancer, especially if the cancer is contained in the prostate, is to remove the prostate. This surgery, called a radical prostatectomy, may have the best long-term results because it removes the cancer and minimizes the chance of recurrence. For men who are unable to have surgery, radiation applied to the prostate gland may be an option. This involves the use of high-frequency X-rays. Finally, cyrotherapy--freezing of the prostate gland to kill the cancer cells--may be an option in some cases. However, cyrotherapy is not generally recommended because it is not as effective at killing cancer cells.

    Hormone Therapy

    • Hormone therapy may be recommended in conjunction with radiation, as a stand alone treatment, or for men whose cancer has spread beyond the prostate and can't be removed by surgery. Hormone therapy involves blocking the tumors' access to male hormones, called androgens, that the cancer needs to survive and grow. Most cancers shrink up to 50 percent when hormone therapy begins, but hormone therapy eventually loses its effectiveness after a few years. Hormone therapy can be surgical--the male testicles which produce 90 percent of the androgens are removed--or by injection, which is expensive and requires frequent visits to the doctor.

    Watch and Wait

    • In some cases, older men (men 70 and older) who have slow-growing prostate cancer are advised to watch and wait. This is a preferred treatment method because surgery may have more of an adverse impact on older men; it is more likely to cause loss of bladder control and impotence in men over 70 than in younger men. Furthermore, many older men with slow-growing cancers are likely to die of unrelated causes before the prostate cancer begins causing symptomatic problems. Watchful waiting involves frequent visits to the doctor to test PSA levels in the blood, since elevated PSA levels can indicate that the cancer has become more aggressive.

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