Treatment For Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in American men apart from lung cancer. More than 2 million men in the United States suffer from this dreaded disease. However, with the recent advancements in the field of medical research and science, the number of patients succumbing to this disease is gradually going down.

Prostate cancer treatment can be broadly classified into local therapy and systemic therapy. Procedures like surgery and radiation therapy are local treatment options used to control the disease in a particular area inside the body. Hormone therapy using agonists is a systemic treatment option used when the cancer converts into a metastasis and affects various organs.

Surgery involves removal of a part or complete prostate gland, a process known as prostatectomy. Different surgical procedures used include radical retropubic prostatectomy, radical perineal prostatectomy, laproscopy, TURP, cryosurgery and pelvic lymphadenectomy. Surgery is the most common treatment in early stage prostate cancer. Side effects of surgery include impotency, dry orgasms and urinary incontinence.

There are two different types of radiation therapy available for treating prostate cancer. One treatment option uses externally-produced radiation beams to kill cancer cells. Alternatively, there is another procedure known as brachytherapy where radioactive material is implanted into the affected area in the form of small seeds. Radiation coming from the seeds is enough to destroy cancer cells in the vicinity. Side effects of this therapy include diarrhea, problems during urination, dry skin and permanent hair loss.

Hormone therapy involves usage of drugs that block the androgens required for the growth of prostate cancer cells. These drugs are known as agonists. Some important drugs include Lutenizing hormone-releasing hormone agonists like leuprolide and goserelin, anti-androgens like flutamide and nilutamide and drugs like ketoconazole that prevent adrenal gland to synthesize testosterone. Physicians can use these drugs individually or in a combination.

A patient should always consult a specialist and get a second opinion about the diagnosis and treatment procedure before starting the treatment.

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How to Fight Prostate Cancer

American Cancer Society states that one out of three new cancer diagnoses in men are prostate cancer. In 2007, 220 000 people were diagnosed with prostate cancer and it is estimated that over 30 000 deaths occurred from that disease. Prostate cancer is the number one killer for men over 85 years in age. An average of 1 out of 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime and an average of 1 out of 35 men will die. A five year survival rate for prostate cancer has increased from 67% in the 70's to 92% in the 90's. However, despite the survival rate, prostate cancer remains the second most cause of cancer death in men, following lung cancer. In the United State alone, prostate cancer account for 11% of all cancer deaths.

The majority of all prostate cancer diagnosis' are discovered with a PSA test. PSA stand for prostate specific antigen which are present in your blood stream where the cancer cells are growing. The primary treatment of prostate cancer for most patients consists of surgery or radiation therapy. Although these operations are adequate for permanent disease control in many patients, a significant number of people will relapse and develop metastases especially if the disease is treated too late. Radical prostatectomy (prostate removal) is the most common used therapy to cure prostate cancer. However, 1/3 patients will develop a biochemical recurrence. Biochemical recurrence happens when prostate-specific antigen (PSA) rises in the blood level. From these patients a third will develop metastases in 8 years frame from the initial PSA elevation and half of them will die 5 years later after the development of the metastases.

Patients who have undergone primary cancer treatments with curative intent with biochemical recurrence have limited treatment options. One option is hormone therapy. However hormonal ablation is associated with poor health and effect on quality of life, including fatigue, hot flashes, loss of libido, decreased muscular mass and osteoporosis (bone mass loss). While hormone therapy can prolongs a relapse, prostate cancer is known to become hormone independent and the therapy does not work. Strategies to delay clinical prostate cancer progression and prolong the interval from treatment failure to hormonal ablation would be desirable.

The good news is epidemiologic studies and basic science evidence suggest strongly that diet and plant-derived phytochemical may play an important role in prostate prevention or treatment. African American men have the highest rate of prostate cancer in the world, whereas Japanese and Chinese living in their country that eat a low-fat and high-fibre food, including soybean and green tea phytochemical, have the lowest rate. Studies suggest that consumption of a rich phytochemical diet that includes fruits and vegetables reduce the risk of cancer. Fresh and processed foods containing high levels of a diverse range of phytochemical type like polyphenol, anthocyanins and flavonoids make a large proportion.

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