Prostate Cancer Patients See High Survival Rates with Seed Implants      
 
   Thursday, 01 February 2007 FAIRFAX, VA (PRESS RELEASE) - More
than ninety percent of men who receive appropriate radiation dose levels
with permanent radiation seed implants to treat their prostate cancer
are cured of their cancer eight years after diagnosis, according to a
study released in the February 1 issue of the International Journal for
Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics, the official journal of ASTRO.

Seed implants have become a widely-accepted treatment option for early
stage prostate cancer because it is very effective at curing the cancer,
is minimally invasive and often spares patients from side effects of
other treatments, such as impotence and incontinence. The seeds, similar
in size to a grain of rice, contain a radiation dose that, once
implanted, delivers concentrated radiation to the prostate, sparing
surrounding organs and tissue.

Doctors in this study evaluated the long-term results of permanent seed
implants in men with early stage prostate cancer. Nearly 2,700 men were
studied at 11 institutions in the United States over eight years. The
radioactive seeds were administered with the aid of ultrasound-guided
techniques to accurately place the seeds in the prostate gland. The
patients received the seed implants as the sole treatment for prostate
cancer with no additional chemotherapy or radiation therapy.

"This study is exciting because it shows that brachytherapy alone
without additional surgery, radiation or drugs can be effective at
curing early-stage prostate cancer,” said Michael J. Zelefsky,
M.D., lead author of the study and Chief of Brachytherapy Services at
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. “These results
also confirm other findings that the quality of the seed implant is a
critical ingredient for achieving a better outcome."

Medical centers participating in the study were Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer in New York, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, New York
Prostate Institute in Oceanside, N.Y., Arizona Oncology Services in
Scottsdale, Ariz., Seattle Prostate Institute in Seattle, Chicago
Prostate Institute in Chicago, Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Cleveland,
Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Mayo Clinic in Rochester,
Minn., University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, Mich., and
Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia.

For more information about prostate cancer treatment options, please
visit http://www.rtanswers.org.

ASTRO is the largest radiation oncology society in the world, with more
than 8,500 members who specialize in treating patients with radiation
therapies. As the leading organization in radiation oncology, biology
and physics, the Society is dedicated to the advancement of the practice
of radiation oncology by promoting excellence in patient care, providing
opportunities for educational and professional development, promoting
research and disseminating research results and representing radiation
oncology in a rapidly evolving socioeconomic healthcare environment.

knowledge is power - growing old is mandatory - growing wise is optional    
"Many more men die with prostate cancer than of it. Growing old is
invariably fatal. Prostate cancer is only sometimes so."
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