Long term survival rate of prostate cancer high when caught early

By Nick Rees

With the exception of skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men, with the American Cancer Society estimating that there were 217,730 new cases of prostate cancer in 2010.

Additionally, Cancer.org reports, 32,050 men died of prostate cancer in the past year. Approximately one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime.

"If the disease is discovered at early stages and the cancer is confined to the prostate and the appropriate local therapy is provided, long term survival from prostate cancer is quite high," Dr. Michael Blum, MD, selected as a Chicago Top Doctor by TopTierMD as a top rated urologist in Chicago, said.

When choosing a treatment option, Dr. Blum, who does as many as 50 prostate cancer surgeries a year, said, many factors are taken into consideration, including age, other illnesses and social situation. Characteristics of the cancer, including the grade, stage and amount of cancer are also considered.

"Based on all of these parameters, there are a number of choices we can provide," Dr. Blum said. "There are choices regarding surgical options, including open or minimally invasive surgery. Radiation therapy, which involves external beam treatments and radioactive seeds, is also a possibility.

"We tend to steer younger, healthier patients with cancer that is not insignificant to surgery, which is more durable in terms of cure rates and the long term.

"For older patients and patients with other problems, we would probably recommend radiation, which can be as good as surgery. Each patient and each cancer is individualized, however, and our recommendations are based on that."

Dr. Blum said that minimal cancer patients are often enrolled in surveillance and do not receive treatment.

"We make sure the cancer doesn't progress," Dr. Blum said. "This saves them from the problems involved in treatment.

"The goal with any treatment option, though, is to achieve results with virtually no change in lifestyle."

Whether surgery or radiation therapy is used, patients can expect bladder and bowel function to be impacted.

"In the long term, more than 95 percent of patients are continent of urine," Dr. Blum said. "Radiation can cause bowel problems, which surgery doesn't, but only one-third of patients, after 10 years, will report poor bowel function."

Dr. Michael Blum, MD, was selected by TopTierMD as a Chicago Top Doctor and is considered Best in Urology in Chicago. He specializes in prostate cancer treatment, treatment of stone disease, and no-needle, no-scalpel vasectomies.