| If you knew you might have only one chance to | | | | two things - what treatment gives the best |
| defeat prostate cancer what would you do? This is a | | | | opportunity to be cured of this disease, and what |
| decision that many American men face annually. | | | | are the complication rates for each treatment option. |
| Advances in technology and robotics have opened | | | | ProstRcision Prostate Cancer Treatment: |
| the door to alternative laparoscopic procedure. | | | | The ProstRcision prostate cancer treatment relies on |
| A laparoscopic procedure used to treat prostate | | | | two forms of radiation therapy, brachytherapy and |
| cancer is known as the da Vinci Radical | | | | external beam treatment, to destroy the cancer cells. |
| Prostatectomy. This surgery was initially hailed as a | | | | The first patient was treated with this procedure in |
| dramatic advancement in prostate cancer surgery | | | | 1979 and annually about 1,000 men elect for this |
| because of its quick recovery time and decreased | | | | operation. Currently Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia is |
| blood loss (relative to traditional open radical | | | | the only location where this prostate cancer |
| prostatectomy). However, the robotic radical | | | | treatment is available. Over 12,000 men for all 50 |
| procedure has recently come under scrutiny for | | | | states and over 40 countries have journeyed to |
| having an increased chance of long term | | | | RCOG to seek cure of their prostate cancer. |
| complications. Given this new information, each man | | | | Consider the Long Term Risk: |
| considering prostate cancer treatment options should | | | | So much is known and has been discussed about the |
| question what the trade off he is is willing to take | | | | robotic radical prostatectomy procedure. The da Vinci |
| for comfort over potential effectiveness. | | | | Radical Prostatectomy might provide the benefit of |
| Short Term Comfort versus Potential Effectiveness: | | | | short term comfort relative to the traditional radical, |
| How much are you willing to sacrifice for | | | | but compared to the ProstRcision procedure |
| effectiveness? It is not an easy question to answer, | | | | performed at RCOG, it's actually more arduous. |
| especially with the ease some patients have reported | | | | ProstRcision is an outpatient procedure - men go |
| in recovering from a robotic radical prostatectomy | | | | home the same day. |
| procedure. In many instances men experience a | | | | Also, it is critical to consider the long term risk. In a |
| hospital stay of less than two days, with less pain | | | | May, 2008 published study Dr. Jim C. Hu examined |
| and less blood loss. From a first impression standpoint | | | | the outcome of minimally invasive radical |
| the surgery seems like a natural choice and maintains | | | | prostatectomy procedures. Notably patients of the |
| this impression until you start to review long term | | | | robotic radical procedure had a 40 percent increased |
| data. | | | | risk of scarring that interfered with organ function |
| The Most Effective Prostate Cancer Cure Rates: | | | | when compared to patients that elected for an open |
| Prostate cancer patients look to an open | | | | prostatectomy. To correct this additional corrective |
| prostatectomy when they need assurance of | | | | surgery could be required. |
| effectiveness and cure rates. The open | | | | There was also a noticeable difference in need for |
| prostatectomy, as performed by Dr. Patrick Walsh at | | | | hormonal or drug therapy six months after surgery. |
| Johns Hopkins University, has the second-highest | | | | Patients of a laparoscopy procedure typically needed |
| documented cure rates in the world at 80%. | | | | this additional treatment almost a quarter of the |
| The physicians that maintain the highest documented | | | | time, compared to about ten percent of open |
| cure rates in the world are located in Georgia at | | | | prostatectomy patients. |
| Radiotherapy Clinics of Georgia (RCOG), home of the | | | | Selecting the Right Treatment: |
| oldest and largest seed implant program for prostate | | | | Finding the right treatment begins with doing your |
| cancer in the country. The overall cure rate for | | | | research. The opening sentence discussed the |
| prostate cancer at RCOG is 84%. | | | | concept of having only one opportunity to defeat |
| Being effective means using the same standards for | | | | prostate cancer. It is a tough subject to deal with. |
| cure rates. Prostate cancer cure rates should be | | | | Ask questions. Ask about the short term and the |
| calculated using a PSA cutpoint of 0.2 ng/ml, which | | | | long term impact of different treatment options. |
| provides an "apples to apples" comparison of | | | | Work with your doctor to tailor treatment to your |
| treatment options. Any man facing a decision about | | | | condition. Your decision around your treatment could |
| prostate cancer treatment options has to consider | | | | be the biggest decision you make in your life. |