Truths & myths of prostate cancer treatments
Prostate cancer – truth or myth?
Many myths about prostate cancer do exist and it is important that you know the truth about this disease and its treatment, to help you make the choice that is right for you.
Radical prostatectomy guarantees cure for localised prostate cancer.
All radical therapies are designed to remove or kill the cancer cells but none of the available treatments can guarantee a complete removal of the cancer. Even if you have surgery to remove the whole prostate gland there is a chance that not all the cancer cells will have been removed. Studies have shown that cancer cells may still be present in at least 15 and even in as many as 50 patients in every 100 patients undergoing surgery.
Surgery, brachytherapy and external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) all have the same chance of curing the prostate cancer; if not, decision making would be easy!
If your first PSA blood test after your surgical treatment is PSA less than 0.1ng per mL you are cured
Whilst it is encouraging that the PSA is undetectable (at a very low level) immediately after a radical prostatectomy there is the same chance that it may recur over the next 5 years as with radical prostatectomy or external beam radiotherapy (EBRT). This is why whichever treatment you have you will continue to have your PSA levels checked for at least 5 years after treatment to make sure that you are still free of prostate cancer.
Some treatments are better than others at curing localised prostate cancer.
All three of the commonly used radical therapies are similarly effective but there are some differences in the side effects that can occur with each therapy and in the effects each therapy may have on the normal activities of daily life. Go to the Treatment selector for some facts about each type of treatment.
Urinary incontinence (loss of bladder control) is less common after brachytherapy than after surgery to remove the prostate gland (prostatectomy).
Incontinence following treatment at The Prostate Brachytherapy Centre is rare (less than 1%) at any stage after patients are treated with prostate brachytherapy. However, patients very frequently suffer with urinary incontinence in the first few months after radical surgery. In experienced surgical hands (surgeons who have carried out a significant number of procedures) only 1 in 20 patients have significant urinary incontinence after one year. In less experienced hands, this figure can be much higher, and recent studies have suggested figure up to 50% (2024 Euro Uro 86 (2024) pages 566–576. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eururo.2024.08.030).
Having radiotherapy after surgery will give me the best chance of success.
There have been no studies to show that this combination of treatments is any more effective than any other.
If you have brachytherapy and it does not completely remove your cancer you cannot then have surgery.
If prostate brachytherapy does not completely remove your prostate cancer, there are other treatment options available to you including surgery. Contact us if you want to find out more about these treatment options.