Prostate cancer is one of the top diseases for men over the age of 30 suffer from each year. While there are many different types of treatment options, both traditional and even holistic, some of these treatments are more readily available than others; especially since each treatment type depends on every individual’s physical condition, cancer stage (early or advanced prostate cancer) and medical history.
The most common forms of prostate cancer treatment are:
- surgery
- chemotherapy
- hormone therapy
- radiation therapy
- proton therapy
Surgery
There are two main forms of surgery to treat prostate cancer: Transurethral Resection of the Prostate (TURP) and Radical Prostatectomy.
TURP partially removes the cancerous tumor to relieve the blocked urethra and allow the bladder to function properly. Although it does not cure cancer, it may slow down tumor growth.
Radical prostatectomy removes the entire prostate, tumor and surrounding tissues in an attempt to completely eradicate the cancer. This type of surgery is generally followed by hormone therapy.
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy uses medicine to kill cancer cells from inside the body. There are several different ways to get this medicine into the body and each one depends on the type of cancer a patient may be suffering with. It can be administered orally, intravenously or intramuscularly.
Hormone therapy
Hormone therapy is a form of treatment that focuses on decreasing the androgen levels. Without sufficient testosterone, which is what cancer cells thrive on, the tumor is unable to grow. While this is not a sure method for killing off cancerous cells, it can be quite effective when combined with other treatments.
Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy uses x-rays or protons under very high energy to destroy cancerous cells; however this method also kills many healthy cells in the process. Although regular human cells are able to repair themselves while cancerous are not, it’s still considered a very aggressive and abrasive treatment option.
Proton Therapy
A form of radiation therapy that aims external radiation, proton therapy uses a beam of protons to kill cancerous cells in a very precise manner. This differs from standard radiation therapy since there is usually less energy used or a more focused radiation beam that minimizes exposure and damage to healthy non-cancerous cells in the body.
Regardless which type of cancer treatment a man chooses to undergo, there is always a margin of error or potentially harmful side effects that could arise after the fact. The most important thing that everyone should do is look at all of the options available and weighs the advantages along with the disadvantages.
Cancer Treatment Guide forProton Beam Therapy
Proton radiation therapy, also known as electron beam radiation therapy, has been a very common treatment option for many patients suffering from diseases like cancer. While it’s a very popular choice for many who suffer from head and neck cancer, prostate cancer patients tend to be at the top of the list for this type of treatment.
Electron Beam Radiation Therapy
The patient undergoing proton beam therapy must lie very still throughout the procedure due to the accuracy that’s required. While the patient lies on the table, the beam rotates around the body to find the correct area that will be targeted by the beam.
Due to the less abrasive nature and positive effects, many men choose proton therapy for prostate cancer in place of or in combination with many other common choices of treatment.
Proton Therapy Side Effects
Although external radiation like proton therapy is said to be comparable to surgery, it does not have a side effect like erectile dysfunction or incontinence, nor is anywhere near the severityof other treatments where there is a long list of side effects that may or may not last for an extended period of time, if not forever. Essentially, the majority of patients who undergo proton therapy end up with very little to no side effects at all.
Proton Beam Therapy Sessions
Each session will vary from one patient to another, but the average number of times that proton therapy is administered is around 40 sessions. Because of this, many patients stay close to the therapy centre for weeks on end, until the sessions are completed.
Proton Beam Therapy Disadvantages
While there are certainly many benefits from proton beam therapy, there are also three main disadvantages that prevent many people from having the opportunity of getting this treatment done:
Cost
Proton beam radiation is very expensive, regardless of insurance coverage. While it does vary from one person and their needs to another, some sessions can cost up to $2000+ each time it’s administered. Depending on the cancer type and stage of development, some argue that this form of treatment can actually cost less than many surgery expenses, and all without the same side effects.
Approval
Even though there are many doctors who stand behind the proton beam science, there are also quite a few health practitioners who believe that the results from proton therapy is not substantial to other forms of prostate cancer treatment. Depending on what each patient’s health practitioner believes, some people might not evenreceive proton beam therapy as a treatment option to begin with.
Convenience
For many cancer patients, receiving proton radiation therapy treatments over an extended period of time can be very difficult. This is especially true when considering the fact that there is a total of only 37 proton cancer treatment centres in the world.
The following countries are the only ones that currently have these facilities:
- Canada
- China
- England
- France
- Germany
- Italy
- Japan
- Korea
- Poland
- Russia
- South Africa
- Sweden
- Switzerland
- USA
For any patients who do not live close to a facility and are willing to travel to one of these countries for treatments, there will certainly be additional costs for travel and accommodations until the sessions are complete, which could take anywhere from 1 to 7 weeks.
While the science of proton therapy has been around since the late 50’s, there is much that is yet to be explored for the future. Until more doctors become convinced of its effectiveness for anyone who may be suffering from diseases like prostate cancer, it will continue to be a more obscured treatment option.
