Prostate Cancer Treatment Options - 4 Options for Cancer Patients

It's difficult to refer to anything cancer-related as a "good thing," but one of the relatively good things about prostate cancer is that there are a number of ways to treat it.

If you have prostate cancer, you should understand the different types of prostate cancer treatment and speak to your physician about each option. As with many other types of cancer, doctors often disagree the best treatment options for patients with prostate cancer. The number of treatment options will also vary depending on how advanced/widespread the cancer is in a particular patient.

So again, the best you can do is educate yourself about the various prostate cancer treatment options and seek opinions from more than one specialist in the field.

With that being said, here are some of the most common treatments for prostate cancer.

Treatment Option #1 - Prostate Surgery

Surgery is possibly the most common form of prostate cancer treatment. The goal of such surgery is to remove the entire prostate from the body, thus removing the cancer along with it. But while the goal of prostate surgery is almost always the same, the method of surgery varies.

Current technology enables doctors to perform robotic surgery for prostate removal, which can minimize hospital time and expedite recovery. Robotic prostate surgery, as it is known, uses minimally invasive laparoscopic techniques.

Treatment Option #2 - Radiation Therapy

Current research shows that surgery and radiation therapy have similar success rates, though the two prostate cancer treatments have different side effects.

With radiation therapy, high-energy rays (similar to x-rays) are used to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors within the prostate. The main types of radiation therapy for prostate cancer are (1) external beam radiation and (2) brachytherapy, or internal radiation. Though both options have decent success rates, there is more data and information about external beam radiation -- at least at the time of this writing (August 2007).

Treatment Option #3 - Hormonal Therapy

Hormone therapy, also known as androgen deprivation therapy, is another prostate cancer treatment options.

With hormone therapy, reduce the level of male hormones (androgens) in the body. Androgens such as testosterone are produced in testicles and have been shown to stimulate the growth of prostate cancer cells. Therefore, by lowering androgen levels within the body, doctors can also slow the growth of cancer shells, or even shrink them.

Side note: In a related article on this website, we discuss the possible causes of prostate cancer, and under the dietary section there is a similar mention this link between testosterone and prostate cancer growth.

Currently, doctors disagree on several aspects of hormone therapy as a prostate cancer treatment. The most common points of dispute are the best time to start such therapy, the best time to stop the therapy, and the method of administering the therapy.

Treatment Option #4 - Chemotherapy

Most people are familiar with chemotherapy as a general treatment for most cancers. Chemotherapy is also another form of prostate cancer treatment as well.

With chemotherapy, anti-cancer drugs are introduced into the body. Because of the many different ways to administer these drugs, there are certain oncologists (cancer doctors) who specialize in the proper administration of chemotherapy.

As a treatment for prostate cancer, chemotherapy is usually reserved for advanced cases wherein the cancer cells are not responding to other forms of cancer treatment. One of the most important things to realize about chemotherapy is that the drugs are very strong. Thus, they can make a patient very sick even while reducing or eliminating cancer. Chemo can attack and kill cancer cells, but it can also damage healthy cells as well.

Side effects of chemotherapy depend on the types of drugs used, the dosage and the length of time they are taken. But in general, side effects of chemotherapy include the following:

* hair loss

* loss of appetite

* mouth sores

* nausea and vomiting

* lower resistance to infection (low white blood cell counts)

* easy bruising or bleeding (low blood platelets)

* general tiredness or fatigue (low red blood cells)

Conclusion

When considering your treatment options for prostate cancer, it's important to get multiple opinions from cancer specialists and to educate yourself as much as possible. This article is just an overview of prostate cancer treatment options, therefore we highly recommend you seek other sources of knowledge before making a decision about treatment.

* You may republish this article online if you keep the author's note with active hyperlinks below. Copyright 2007, Prostate Surgery Center.

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Brandon Cornett is the publisher of Prostate Surgery Center, an unbiased guide to prostate cancer and the surgeries associated with it. Learn more by visiting http://www.prostatesurgerycenter.com

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Prostate Cancer Symptoms – Understand What They Mean

Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer in American men. It is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men. Over 30,000 men in the United States will die of prostate cancer this year. Although in the early stages there are no prostate cancer symptoms, most of the prostate cancer deaths can be avoided if men paid heed to the early warning signs.

What It Means
Prostate cancer is an abnormal growth of cells that leads to the formation of a tumor in the prostrate. Prostate cancer might spread to other parts of the body, like lymph nodes, bones, and other organs. Prostate cancer is common amongst older men.

Symptoms of the Disease
Prostate cancer symptoms often appear in the late stages of the disease. But this does not mean that prostate cancer cannot be diagnosed in the early stages. Most middle aged and older men suffer from the most common prostate problem called the enlarged prostate or the benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Men with enlarged prostate will show the following symptoms-

• Difficulty in starting urination
• Weak or slow flow of urination
• Need to urinate frequently

It is advisable to go see a doctor, because the doctor will run a complete check to rule out the possibility of the presence of prostrate cancer. If the problem is diagnosed as a simple enlarged prostate , the doctor will prescribe a medication, which will relieve the symptoms. If prostate cancer is diagnosed, it would probably be in its early stage, when it can be cured.

The problem arises when men ignore these symptoms as being a simple case of enlarged prostrate. Later on when they suffer from additional symptoms like:

• Pain in back, hips, and thighs
• Unexplained weight loss
• Feeling of tiredness

At this point of time when they do go to see a doctor, it might be the case that the prostate cancer is at an advanced stage. The treatment of advanced stages of prostate cancer is very hard. That is why doctors advice that when the first signs of prostate problem arise, seek the help of a health specialist.

Click here to understand prostate cancer treatments. Read useful facts on prostate cancer online here. Also learn how to find a help for prostate cancer from the Internet community.

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Prostate Cancer Information

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men, apart from skin cancer. After lung cancer, prostate cancer is the second leading cause of death among men.

In this year, around 234,500 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in the US. In 2006, approximately 27,300 men will die from prostate cancer in the US alone. One in every 8 Canadian men will develop the disease, and one in 3 will die from it.

Every man is at risk for prostate cancer. Black men have about a 60% higher incidence rate of prostate cancer than white men, and almost a two-fold higher mortality rate than white men.

Men most at risk include:

- Men over age 40

- North American and European origin

- Diets with a high fat intake

- History of the disease in the family.

The disease takes a long time to develop, and can be easily treated, if detected in its early stages. Prostate cancer can take up to eight to ten years to spread and become life threatening.

There are no specific prostate cancer symptoms, but some potential signs include:

- Frequent, difficult and painful urination

- Blood or pus in the urine

- Pain the in the lower back, pelvic area, or upper thighs

- Painful ejaculation

When speaking about medical options, doctors typically offer patients two choices: radiation therapy or surgery to remove prostate gland.

Studies show that that adding the following to your diet can help reduce the risk of prostate cancer:

- Vitamin E

- Vitamin C

- Tomato juice

- Selenium

- Garlic

Here are 5 foods that can help prevent prostate cancer:

1. Black, pinto, small red and kidney beans.

2. Tomatoes, watermelon and pink grapefruit.

3. Sweet potatoes, carrots and cantaloupe.

4. Broccoli, kale and cauliflower.

5. Soy milk.

Alex Fir shares a wealth of information on his website Prostate Cancer Information. To read latest prostate cancer news visit his site right now.

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Prostate Cancer Treatment Options

Prostate cancer is perhaps one of the most expensive diseases that affect men all over the world, mainly because the treatment takes long and could entail high financial requirement to finish the treatment regimen. Today, people living with prostate cancer have lots of prostate cancer treatment options to choose from.

Watchful waiting is one of the most common and perhaps the cheapest among the prostate cancer treatment options at present. Patients who have not been suffering so much from the symptoms of the disease will have to set aside any medical prostate cancer treatment options.

In watchful waiting, a patient with the help of his doctor monitors his condition. This procedure is mostly recommended to older patients whose malignant tumor is slow-growing. The patient will have to take advantage of the slow development of the cancer cells and can still enjoy a relatively good quality of life. A medical treatment is not introduced just yet because the treatment’s risks may outweigh the benefits.

Radical prostatectomy is one of the most invasive prostate cancer treatment options. This procedure will remove the prostate and the affected lymph nodes. This is to prevent the spread of cancer cells from reaching other parts of the reproductive system. There are three methods of radical prostatectomy: transurethral, transrectal and transperineal. All the methods require the aid of transrectal ultrasound to guide the needle that will be inserted into the patient.

Radical prostatectomy can expose the patient to infections since a cut will be made into the patient’s skin. Nevertheless, the patients will be instructed to take antibiotic prior to the actual procedure.

Radiotherapy is also another prostate cancer treatment alternative. The newest technology uses radioactive implants that will be placed on the prostate and the nearby tissues. The implants will illuminate radioactive light that will kill the cancer cells. The seed implants will be placed via the needle that is inserted through perineum (the area between the anus and the scrotum) with aid of transrectal ultrasound.

The old-fashioned type of radiotherapy is the one which uses a machine that emits radioactive rays like x-rays. The light is directed to the prostate area in killing the cancers cells.

Hormone therapy is employed to inhibit the production of testosterone, which is responsible for the growth of cells including the cancerous ones. Estrogen is injected to decrease the level of testosterone thus cancer cells are prevented from spreading to other parts of the prostate and the nearby tissues and organs.

There are other prostate cancer treatment options but are still in the clinical trial stages. Nonetheless these treatments may soon become the answer to patients' quest for other alternative and safe treatments.

Milos Pesic is an expert in the field of Prostate Cancer and runs a highly popular and comprehensive Prostate Cancer web site. For more articles and resources on Prostate Cancer related topics, treatment options and much more visit his site at:

=>http://prostate.need-to-know.net/

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