Surgery Helps With Prostate Cancer, Sometimes
August 13th, 2008 Posted in prostate cancer, prostatectomyThe latest update from a European study that has followed men with prostate cancer for more than a decade leaves the debate about the advantages of aggressive treatment versus “watchful waiting” undecided.
The advantage in survival seen for men who underwent surgery to remove the prostate disappeared after 10 years. While deaths attributed to cancer continued to be lower among those having surgery, the overall death rate for both groups was the same, according to the researchers with the Scandinavian Prostate Cancer Group.
The meaning of the study for men now being diagnosed with prostate cancer is uncertain, because the study began before the use of testing for prostate-specific antigen, today’s primary method of diagnosis, the researchers added.
The findings were published online Aug. 12 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.