Jumat, 31 Juli 2009

Prostate Cancer Treatment

Prostate Cancer Treatment Option
If you've been told that you have prostate cancer, then you've probably had The Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) Test, been physically checked and probably have already had a biopsy performed. During the biopsy, the lab will assign what's called a Gleason score helps the doctor in determining what stage your prostate cancer is currently in. The appropriateness of any treatment is dependant on the advancement of your prostate cancer. Staging and the Gleason score will help determine which treatment program is right for you.

While a prostate cancer is considered serious, don't forget that it's typically very slow growing. If your cancer has progressed to the stage where intervention is necessary, a procedure known as Brachytherapy may be in order.

Simply put, radioactive material is sealed in small seeds or pellets that are placed directly around a prostate tumor. It is also called an internal radiation or implant radiation. There's no question that this treatment program is effective and does a good job in controlling prostate cancer

Internal radiotherapy or Brachytherapy is usually the recommended prostate cancer treatment when the cancer has dangerously spread beyond the prostate gland of victims. The major benefit of this radiation treatment strategy is that it will help to spare healthy nearby tissues. This in turn will limit the side effects experienced.

This type of treatment plan is not available in all hospitals. Most larger towns and cities however have nuclear medicine options available. Given the high success rate of this prostate cancer treatment, it's well worth your time to locate health resources that specialize in this type of program

Remember that just because you have been diagnosed with prostate cancer, it's not a death sentence. Many people with prostate cancer have followed their doctors advice and went with a treatment known simply as watchful waiting. As the name implies, watchful waiting is a situation where no direct action is taken to treat the prostate cancer. Watchful waiting may be an appropriate course of action for your prostate cancer depending on your age and other factors.
The Best Prostate Cancer Treatment
Whether a therapeutic technique is the best prostate cancer treatment for a patient depends on various factors. In selecting the treatment, a patient and his doctor should take into consideration the patient's age and expected life span, the stage and grade of the cancer, possible side effects and other health problems that the patient might have.
One of the best prostate cancer treatment techniques, particularly for older men and those who suffer from other serious illnesses, is the expectant management or watchful waiting method. Watchful waiting involves the close monitoring of the cancer through prostate specific antigen testing. In retropubic prostatectomy, the surgeon makes an incision in the lower abdomen to remove the prostate gland. Lymph nodes around the prostate might also be removed depending on whether the cancer has spread to these parts.
In perineal prostatectomy, the incision is made in the perineum or the skin between anus and scrotum. In the hands of experienced surgeons, it becomes an advantageous option compared with retropubic and perineal prostatectomy. The electricity that passes through the instrument cuts or vaporizes the issue in the prostate. Radiation therapy is the method in which high-energy rays or particles are used to kill cancer cells. This, like surgical procedures, is another example of a highly developed method of dealing with cancer. Radiation therapy is classified into two main types, the external beam radiation therapy (ERBT) and brachytherapy.
In treating localized prostate cancer, a procedure called crysosurgery is sometimes used. Aside from cryosurgery, hormone therapy and chemotherapy are also options that prostate cancer patients can explore. Hormone therapy does not cure cancer but is primarily used to lower levels of male hormones in a patient's body. Chemotherapy, meanwhile, is a procedure more commonly used in cases when the cancer has spread beyond the prostate gland.

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