Has anything really changed in PCa treatment or Dx in the past 10 years?

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Dick Smith - 18 Sep 2006 06:16 GMT

Since 1996, has anything really chaned in the treatment or diagnosis of
prostate cancer? Just from the top of my head, I can think of Robitic
RRP (although I don't know if this is considered a *better* treatment).
Was fPSA, and PSAV used back in 1996? Has the surgical procedure
advanced since 1996?

I'm using 1996 as that is when my dad is dx, and was wondering if
things would have been different if he was dx now. Honestly, (and maybe
sadly) it doesn't really seem like much has changed. Someone correct me
if I'm wrong please.

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tchtic@yahoo.com - 18 Sep 2006 12:30 GMT

> Since 1996, has anything really chaned in the treatment or diagnosis of
> prostate cancer?

A lot has changed. I don't understand all the nuances but the
diagnosis benefits from improvements in ultrasound, MRI, and nuclear
medicine's tracers.

On the treatment front, the surgeons have a better understanding of the
subtle structures. Seems to me (and I don't really know anything
except what I read here) that robotic surgery is a major improvement.

On Rad, you have the evolution of EBRT technology. Plain external
beam, the proton stuff, 3D-CRT, IMRT, and now Tomo. None of it is
perfect but every year or two, Rad gets that much better at targeting
the disease.

It's not quite accurate to say that one day you're diagnosed with a
fatal disease, the docs and techs unleash a blizzard of technology on
you, a short time of mild discomfort passes, and then they say, "OK,
you're cured."

But it's getting close to that.

-kh

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Leonard Evens - 18 Sep 2006 15:27 GMT

> Since 1996, has anything really chaned in the treatment or diagnosis of
> prostate cancer? Just from the top of my head, I can think of Robitic
[quoted text clipped - 6 lines]
> sadly) it doesn't really seem like much has changed. Someone correct me
> if I'm wrong please.

If you want some idea of how much has changed, look at Walsh's 1995 book
and Scardino's 2005 book. You will find the same basic elements are in
both, but some details have changed. I think there have been
incremental improvements in all aspects of diagnosing and treating
prostate cancer, but so far no really radical change.

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