Prostate cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in men, according to MayoClinic.com. The National Institutes of Health names it as the third leading cause of cancer deaths in men. It is much more common in older men. Treatment options in prostate cancer are diverse. Choices depend on the patient's preferences and state of health, as well as the stage of the disease.
Watchful Waiting
According to the National Cancer Institute, in elderly patients with other medical problems and in the early stages of prostate cancer, doctors recommend watchful waiting. This option, also called active surveillance, involves periodic blood tests and imaging tests to determine the progress of the disease until certain symptoms appear or there is a change in the patient's status.
Surgery
Radical prostatectomy, involving the removal of the prostate gland, surrounding tissue and the seminal vesicles, is one surgical treatment for prostate cancer. It might be preceded by a closer look at the surrounding lymph nodes to determine the extent of spread of the cancer.
Transurethral resection of the prostate is another surgical option. This procedure relieves bothersome symptoms like urinary obstruction in patients who may or may not also receive other treatments for prostate cancer. Resection is also sometimes done on patients who are too sick to undergo radical prostatectomy.
The NCI suggests that patients and doctors discus the possibility of a nerve-sparing prostatectomy to avoid the incontinence and impotence that may follow radical prostatectomy.
Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy uses high-energy rays to kill the cancer cells. External methods use sources of radiation placed outside the body. Internal radiation, includes permanent or low-dose brachytherapy which uses pellets or seeds implanted in the prostate; and temporary or high dose brachytherapy, which uses catheters to deliver the radioactive material into the prostate.
Cryosurgery
Cryosurgery involves the destruction of the cancerous cells by creating ice balls within the tissue. According to the ACS, this is achieved by inserting probes into the prostate and passing freezing gases into the tissue.
Hormone Therapy
In this treatment option, drugs or procedures are used to remove the male sex hormones or block their effects on prostate cancer. Orchiectomy, the surgical removal of the testes, permanently removes about 90 percent of testosterone in men, according to the ACS. Drugs such as leuprolide, goserelin and buserelin block the testes from producing testosterone. Antiandrogens, like nilutamide and flutamide, block the actions of testosterone on the prostate. Ketoconazole and aminogluthetimide block the adrenals from making more androgens. Estrogens are also used in rare cases.
Chemotherapy
In chemotherapy, patients drugs that kill cancer cells or stop cancer cells from growing. According to the NIH, such drugs include adriamycin, estramustine, paclitaxel, doxorubicin and prednisolone.
Biologic Therapy
The latest addition to the options for treatment is a drug recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Provenge. This works by inducing an immune response against the prostate cancer cells. This is also called immunotherapy.
