After prostate cancer is diagnosed and staged, doctors will discuss the various plans for treatment that are right for your particular situation. There are various options for treatment, depending on the extent of the cancer, and if prostatectomy is done, there may be supplemental treatments following that procedure.
Radiation Therapy
While radiation is not always used after a prostatectomy, it can be used if the cancer returns after surgery, or if surgery was not able to fully remove the cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. Radiation can be given with external beam radiation, when a machine delivers the radiation from outside your body, or by brachytherapy, when radioactive seeds are implanted into the area where the cancer is.
Hormone/Androgen Deprivation Therapy
As with radiation therapy, hormone therapy is an option after a prostatectomy if the cancer has recurred. There are several kinds of hormone therapy. The first kind is surgical castration, or orchiectomy, when the surgeon removes the testicles, which stops androgen/testosterone production, causing many prostate cancers to shrink or stop growing. Other forms of hormone therapy include antiandrogen drugs, luteinzing hormone-releasing agonists, and estrogens, according to the National Cancer Institute.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is generally not used in early prostate cancers, but if the cancer has spread past the prostate, this becomes an option. The standard first-line chemotherapy regimen in prostate cancer is docetaxel (brand name Taxotere) and a steroid, prednisone. Other chemotherapeutic drugs used in treating prostate cancer include doxorubicin (Adriamycin), vinblastine (Velban), paclitaxel (Taxol) and carboplatin (Paraplatin). Chemotherapy is not a cure for prostate cancer, but can help reduce symptoms and slow the growth of the cancer.
