prostate-report.org

Prostate tumors not likely to worsen during active surveillance period in low risk patients

Johns Hopkins experts have found that men enrolled in an active surveillance program for prostate cancer that eventually needed surgery to remove their prostates fared just as well as men who opted to remove the gland immediately, except if a follow-up biopsy during surveillance showed high-grade cancer.
Active surveillance, also known as ”watchful waiting,” is an option open to men whose tumors are considered small, low-grade and at low risk of being lethal. Active surveillance is based on fact that, given the potential complications of prostate surgery and likelihood, certain low-risk tumors do not require treatment. Thus some men opt to enroll in active surveillance programs to monitor PSA levels and receive annual biopsies to detect cellular changes that signal a higher grade, more aggressive cancer for which treatment is recommended. [ continue to read ]