prostate cancer index | prostate cancer | prostatectomy | radiation | hormone | cryosurgery | hifu | wait & see | alternative treatment | diet | articles | contact |

Laser optics plus ultrasound imaging holds promise as a noninvasive test for prostate cancer

April 19th, 2013 Posted in prostate cancer | No Comments »
Multispectral photoacoustic imaging, which combines laser optics and ultrasound imaging technologies, can reliably distinguish between benign and malignant prostate tissue, a new study indicates.
Researchers at the University of Rochester looked at 42 prostatectomy specimens using the new imaging technique. Multispectral photoacoustic imaging, still in its infancy, predicted 25 out of 26 benign tissues correctly and 13 out of 16 malignant tissues correctly, said Dr. Vikram Dogra, lead author of the study.

Similar outcomes for robotic, laparoscopic prostatectomy

April 19th, 2013 Posted in prostatectomy | No Comments »

For men undergoing routine surgical treatment for localized cancer of the prostate, robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RALP) does not result in better functional outcomes compared to laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (LRP), according to a study published in the April issue of Urology

The researchers found that 87.9 percent of the LRP patients and 82.6 percent of RALP patients had regained baseline urinary function scores, while 57.3 and 61.3 percent, respectively, had regained baseline sexual function scores. In both groups, nerve-sparing surgical procedures mitigated the adverse effects on sexual function. Surgical method was not associated with urinary function or sexual function at 36 months. There was an association between better urinary function and better general mental health.

Tags: , ,

New pain-free treatment for prostate cancer

April 16th, 2013 Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

For most prostate cancer patients, the options are surgery, radiation treatment or simply watching to see whether the tumour gets bigger.

There is now a low-risk and relatively painless treatment available for the thousands of Australian men who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer.

From now on, those men with low-risk prostate cancer have another option, called focal therapy.

Tags: , , ,

Intermittent Therapy Increases Risk Of Death From Prostate Cancer

April 12th, 2013 Posted in prostate cancer | No Comments »
It is called intermittent therapy and the technique is very commonly used in the treatment of prostate cancer.
While essentially taking a break from hormone-blocking prostate cancer treatments – once the cancer has stabilized – appears to have short term benefits for erectile function and mental health, it could have a negative effect on
Based on 10 years of follow-up of 1,525 patients, researchers found that patients on intermittent therapy had a 10-20% increase in the risk of death. This raises a crucial issue.
The break certainly is very important but with this knowledge there needs to be a careful look at risks versus benefit. It is an example of how complicated the long-term management of disease can be

New prostate cancer technology could lead to more targeted therapies

April 11th, 2013 Posted in prostate cancer | No Comments »
Fifty-seven-year-old Ed Downey thought he was the picture of health – with a long life ahead of him with his wife and two sons.
But a trip to the urologist threw him a curve ball after his doctor analyzed his prostate-specific antigen (PSA) score.
For the past 30 years, doctors have conducted a digital rectal exam, followed by an ultra-sound guided biopsy, in response to an increasing PSA score.
But this technique has run into problems.  According to Dr. Art Rastinehad, an interventional urologic oncologist from North Shore LIJ Health System in Manhassat, N.Y., prostate biopsies blindly select areas of the prostate to sample.

Study: microRNA is designed to stop proliferation of prostate cancer cells

April 11th, 2013 Posted in radiation therapy | No Comments »
The most recent in a series of studies from a team at the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center has shown that a single molecule is at the heart of one of the most basic survival tactics of prostate cancer cells.
A paper published today by the Public Library of Science identifies a microRNA called miR-125b as a potential target for treatments designed to stop the proliferation of prostate cancer cells, particularly in patients who have developed a late-stage form of the disease resistant to androgen deprivation therapy.
MicroRNAs are small, single strands of RNA that regulate gene expression processes between larger strands of RNA — that is, they play vital roles in turning genes on and off. RNA, or ribonucleic acid, is a family of large molecules involved in the coding, decoding, regulation and expression of genes.

Surgery offers better survival benefit for men with localised prostate cancer

March 16th, 2013 Posted in prostate cancer, prostatectomy, radiation therapy | No Comments »
According to a large observational study, conducted by a group of researchers of the Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm, surgery offers better survival benefit for men with localised prostate cancer
First of all, the research team reveals that the  current gold standard management of localised prostate cancer is radical therapy, either as surgery or radiation therapy. Then the study concludes that surgery is likely superior to radiation for the majority of men who have localized prostate cancer, especially the younger age group and those with no or few comorbidities
The study won the second prize for best abstract in oncology at the 28th Annual EAU Congress which will open in Milan this Friday, 15 March.

Tags: , , , , ,

What are the main differences between open and robotic-assisted laparoscopic surgery?

March 13th, 2013 Posted in prostatectomy | No Comments »

There are several important differences. First, robotic surgery is a minimally-invasive approach, so by its very nature, patients have less abdominal trauma due to smaller incisions and patients will have less pain when compared to open surgery.

Additionally, our research shows that patients in general are more satisfied with their incisions after this procedure than after open surgery. This allows some patients to return to work rather quickly, some as quick as two weeks. Comparative studies suggest that patients after open surgery tend to take a couple of extra weeks to recover physically.

The second main benefit of robotic surgery is that the blood loss during robotic surgery is far less than during open surgery, even open surgery done by an experienced surgeon. For example, our blood transfusion rate during robotic prostatectomy is near zero percent. Even in the hands of the most experienced open surgeons in the world, the blood transfusion rate varies from 8 to 40 percent. Less blood loss and better visualization allows us to remove the cancer at an equally effective rate to open surgery, even for high-grade or advanced tumors.

With the magnification of the robotic system, sparing of the urethral sphincter muscle (important for urinary control) and sparing of neurovascular bundles (important for erections) can be done in an extremely precise fashion. Patients should know that long-term results of recovery for both urinary and sexual health are comparable between robotic and open surgery as long as the surgery is performed by a high volume, highly trained surgeon

Tags: ,

Prostate cancer treatment increases risk of fracture, death

February 19th, 2013 Posted in prostate cancer risks | No Comments »

According to a study conducted by researchers from the Cancer Institute of New Jersey, men who undergo a hormone deprivation treatment for prostate cancer are significantly more likely to suffer from fractures, and many of the men who suffer from fractures are significantly more likely to die

Based on the presence or absence of certain medical conditions (including diabetes, liver disease, paralysis, and alcohol and cigarette use) within one year before cancer diagnosis, the researchers rated the men for risk of skeletal complications such as fracture.

Tags: , , , , ,

Shorter course of prostate cancer therapy may be as effective as standard length

February 14th, 2013 Posted in prostate cancer | No Comments »

In a study recently presented researchers sugests eighteen months of hormone therapy for localized, high-risk prostate cancer produced a similar survival rate as the usual 36 months.

Research team concluded three years of hormonal therapy was almost picked randomly, and there’s nothing magical about that duration, and this may well change the standard of care. Other experts urged larger, longer studies before accepting these results as sufficient to change practice.

« Previous Entries