Category: General Prostate
Q: Is prostate cancer an “old man’s” disease? A: Yes and no. In general, growing older is considered the biggest risk factor for most types of cancer. This is because genetic instability increases with aging, and it might also be because some people are more susceptible to a lifetime accumulation of environmental toxins that damage keep reading
Let’s pretend that you are a prostate cancer patient whose doctor, a well-known robotic surgeon, recommends robotic-assisted radical prostatectomy (RRP). He makes some very persuasive points: Based on the Partin tables you have less than a 12% chance of biochemical recurrence (rising PSA) in three years after treatment. He’ll “get it all out” and you keep reading
A diagnosis of prostate cancer (PCa) can be shocking, even when the cancer is early stage, localized, and considered highly treatable. A secondary shock wave hits when the patient finds out he has a number of treatment choices, but they all have a variety of trade-offs. Suddenly, the man’s fate lies in his own hands keep reading
Men need testosterone, but prostate cancer does not. While there is new evidence that use of testosterone replacement therapy does not lead to prostate cancer, once prostate cancer has occurred, it appears to be fueled by testosterone. This is particularly bad news if prostate cancer has penetrated the edges of the gland capsule and begun keep reading
What do you know about the effects of alcohol consumption on your body? Everyone knows that alcohol abuse (heavy drinking) will eventually cause liver damage. But wait, there’s more. Those with a high level of consumption are putting other organs on the line: Brain – alcohol impairs clear thinking and coordination because it muddles the keep reading
In the urologic world, there is a longstanding bias that surgical removal of the prostate gland, or radical prostatectomy (RP), is the preferred treatment for prostate cancer (PCa). It is based in the outdated belief that all PCa is a) multifocal, and b) likely to spread beyond the gland if untreated. Thus, it seemed logical keep reading
Did you ever hear the folktale about Chicken Little, who was hit on the head by a falling acorn? He wanted to warn the king – and everyone else – that “the sky is falling!” The story and its many age-old variants satirizes people who are unduly alarmed and spread exaggerated rumors. However, three recent keep reading
A new approach to focal treatment for prostate cancer has made its entrance onto the world stage and has patients talking. It is called photodynamic therapy (photo for light, dynamic for action) or PDT. It involves administering a light-sensitive chemical called TOOKAD® by a 10-minute IV injection, which is quickly taken up in the prostate keep reading
A newly available prostate cancer treatment has made Kaiser Permanente, one of the largest not-for-profit health plans, sit up and take notice. On October 4, 2016, the life sciences news service StatNews featured an article by Kaiser News staffer Julie Appleby, “Billboards and Websites Push Costly Prostate Cancer Treatment With Unknown Long-Term Benefits.”[i] The treatment keep reading
One of the most respected robotic surgeons, Dr. David Samadi, is an active online participant, with regular blogs on relevant prostate cancer topics. The New York Daily News recently (Sep. 22, 2016) carried an article by Dr. Samadi, “Prostate Cancer Means Deciding between Surgery or Radiation.”[i] In talking about the necessity of doing research in keep reading
