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5 Ways to Treat Prostate Cancer

September 05, 2018

Prostate cancer is arguably one of the most treatable cancers. The key is to catch it early.

“Prostate cancer typically grows very slowly and the majority of men with prostate cancer are over 65 years old and do not die from the disease,” said Dr. Stephen Yu, a urologist with the Hartford HealthCare Tallwood Urology & Kidney Institute.

Based on your symptoms, age, risk of aggressive cancer and personal preference, there are multiple options for treating prostate cancer, according to the National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society and the experts at the Tallwood Urology & Kidney Institute.

These include:

Active surveillance: Prostate cancer doesn’t always need to be treated immediately. These days, some patients take an “active surveillance” approach. That lets doctors track the cancer with regular checkups and tests to see if it’s growing, treating it if testing and monitoring reveals growth or spread of the disease.

Radiation therapy uses high energy X-rays or other types of radiation to kill cancer cells or prevent them from growing. There are two types of radiation therapy used to treat prostate cancer:

• External beam radiation using a machine outside of the body, aimed at the location of the cancer. Tallwood uses Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy, an advanced three-dimensional technique that directs the radiation right on to the cancer to minimize damage to surrounding healthy tissue.
• Internal radiation or brachytherapy. Internal radiation (prostate brachytherapy): uses a radioactive substance sealed in seeds or other objects that are then placed directly into or near the cancer. This can be performed with permanent seeds utilizing a low dose rate (LDR) implant, or temporary seeds utilizing a high dose rate (HDR) implant which is removed in 24 hours or less after placement.

Hormone therapy helps to stop or slow the growth of prostate cancer, a treatment called androgen deprivation therapy works to reduce the body’s level of testosterone, which stimulates the growth of prostate cancer cells. Hormone therapy alone, however, does not cure prostate cancer. It’s typically used to shrink cancer before radiation therapy or if the cancer comes back after surgery or radiation.

Chemotherapy uses anti-cancer drugs injected into a vein or given by mouth. These drugs enter the bloodstream and go throughout the body, making this treatment potentially useful for cancers that have spread (metastasized) to distant organs.

Surgery in the case of prostate cancer involves the complete removal of the prostate gland and surrounding tissue. It is also known as a radical prostatectomy. Surgery can be performed both traditionally, or using robotic guidance to help preserve sexual function and continence.

The urologic cancer specialists at the Tallwood Urology & Kidney Institute treat more prostate cancer cases each year than any other center in Connecticut. Learn more about our services – and treatment options – here.