Prostate Cancer Treatment

There are countless successful treatments for prostate cancer.

Most men diagnosed with a tumour on this organ can expect to live many more years. Although the success of the treatment naturally depends on how the cancer has evolved.

If it is detected at an early stage and is still located only in the prostate, the treatment can be curative. Brachytherapy, surgery and external radiotherapy are all possible treatments if the tumour is at an early stage.

If the cancer is diagnosed at an advanced stage, i.e. if it is no longer located only in the prostate, the treatments are more aggressive. In these cases, the purpose of the treatment is palliative. The aim is to control the disease, hinder its evolution and minimise the symptoms.

As a rule, therefore, the earlier prostate cancer is diagnosed, the greater the effectiveness of the treatment and the fewer the consequences of the tumour and treatments, and the complications and side effects.

The length of treatment for a prostate cancer patient is very variable. It depends on the stage of the disease when the problem is detected and the type of treatment chosen.

Some treatments only need to be performed once. They take 1 to 2 hours and require less than 24 hours in hospital (such as brachytherapy).

Others, like radiotherapy, can last around a month and a half. As a rule, surgery implies 2–5 days in hospital and a variable period of catheterisation.

In more advanced cases, many patients have to undergo lifelong treatment. For example, men undergoing hormone treatment for more advanced stage cancer.

Regardless of the length of treatment, patients with prostate cancer need regular follow-up care throughout their life – at least until 15 years after the initial treatment.

Urologists must assess the PSA level regularly and other general and specific tests are often necessary (to assess levels of testosterone, kidney function and bone-related products, for example), as well as imaging exams. These exams range from the more straightforward (ultrasound scans) to the more sophisticated (NMR and the more recent PET-CT with PSMA).