Advances in Radiation Therapy for Prostate Cancer
Dr. Dahiya is a renowned radiation oncologist within the Dallas-Fort Worth, TX area and an expert in radiation therapy for prostate cancers. His practice focuses entirely on the treatment of prostate cancer allowing him to continue to develop ongoing subject matter expertise within a single disease state. Using advanced... more
As life expectancy in most developed countries continues to improve the incidence of prostate cancer continues to rise. In the U.S. alone a staggering nearly 250,000 men are now diagnosed with prostate cancer every year. Globally this total is nearing 1.3 million cases per year. The volume of clinical data for the treatment of prostate cancer has continued to mount over the years giving doctors better long-term data with respect to cure rates, risk of tumor spread as well as morbidity and mortality.
Additionally, we now have very strong data which spans over 3 decades on definitive therapies for prostate cancer including surgery and radiation. Many advances in surgical techniques have come about over the past 15 years and surgeons can now remove cancer using robot-assisted laparoscopic prostatectomy (RALP). These tools allow surgeons to perform less dissection hence less blood loss, decreased incontinence and impotence rates as well as faster recovery.
In the world of radiation oncology, technological improvements have advanced at a meteoric pace. Radiation oncology has moved away from treating large fields which resulted in greater side effects for many patients. Today, radiation oncologists take advantage of a number of advanced tools which allow better tumor targeting and dose distribution.
A revolutionary tool is delivering radiation using Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT). This highly precise technology allows doctors to focus the cancer-killing radiation on the prostate while protecting nearby organs. This non-invasive technology which uses energy at a specific frequency allows patients to receive a daily dose of radiation to the tumor which is typically given over a number of weeks. There are a number of different radiation tools to treat prostate cancers including radiation seeds (brachytherapy), proton therapy, and stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). Proton therapy and SRS utilize IMRT type protocols as well.
Patients describe the experience of prostate IMRT as “having a fancy x-ray daily.” The treatment doesn’t use heat or cause temperature changes and remains painless and sensation free lasting only minutes per day.
In addition, better imaging technologies allow more precision in the targeting of the tumor. Radiographic imaging such as 3-Tesla (3T) MRI’s, high-resolution simulation CTs, and Axumin PET scans allow radiation oncologists to better outline prostate cancer while protecting surrounding normal organs. These tools can be fused together in order to achieve the highest level of tumor targeting.
Today’s IMRT technologies allow patients to maintain a very high quality of life during and long after treatment has concluded. These technological advancements have decreased the subacute, acute, and long-term side effects of radiation resulting in safer, more accessible, and clinically effective treatments for prostate cancer. Continued advances in therapies for prostate cancer patients will allow for better long-term results for more and more patients.
