Each is commonly one Urgent call To introduce a national prostate cancer screening program, often after a diagnosis of a High profile person with disease.
But there may be a very good reason that almost all countries (Lithuania and Kazakhstan being the one exceptions) should not national screening programs. Overtreating a cancer that has little probability of progressing – or growing quickly – could cause significant harm. About half of men 90 and older have prostate cancer, and, as It is called: “More men die from prostate cancer because of it.”
A recent study within the journal JAMA Oncology Highlights the potential long-term harms of overtreatment, and offers recent insights into the continuing debate about prostate cancer screening and treatment.
Prostate cancer is certainly one of them. The most common cancer affects men. Treatment, while often life-saving, can result in serious complications, corresponding to lack of bladder control, sexual dysfunction and even secondary cancer.
For years, experts have debated the right way to balance the advantages of early diagnosis through prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing against the risks of overdiagnosing and overtreating cancer which will never harm. Don't be the cause. This recent study adds necessary evidence to the talk.
Researchers analyzed data from two large prostate cancer prevention trials, linking them to Medicare health records to trace outcomes for greater than 29,000 participants. About 4,000 of those men were diagnosed with prostate cancer. Of this group, 655 underwent surgery to remove the prostate (prostatectomy), 1,056 received radiotherapy, and a couple of,235 received no treatment.
The study followed the lads for a median of ten years, comparing the speed of complications between the treated and untreated groups. The results were surprising.
Men who underwent prostatectomy were seven times more more likely to experience urinary or sexual complications than those that weren’t treated. Common problems include incontinence, erectile dysfunction, and urinary tract obstruction. In severe cases, these complications require secondary procedures, corresponding to penile implants or artificial urinary sphincters.
The researchers also found that radiotherapy was related to a threefold increase in urinary or sexual complications. Specific radiation-related problems, corresponding to inflammation of the bladder (radiation cystitis) or bowel (radiation proctitis), were rare in untreated men but occurred in about five cases per 1,000 person-years in those receiving radiotherapy. are
Patients who had radiotherapy were thrice more more likely to develop bladder cancer than untreated men.
After 12 years, 61% of men who had surgery and 42% of those that received radiotherapy experienced at the very least one treatment-related complication, compared with only 24% of untreated men. .
BSIP SA / Alamy Stock Photo
What does this mean for men diagnosed with prostate cancer?
This study emphasizes the importance of tailoring prostate cancer treatment to the person.
Prostate cancer often grows slowly, and in lots of cases, it doesn’t require immediate treatment. For low-risk cancers, energetic surveillance — watching the cancer closely without treating it until it shows signs of progression — will help avoid unnecessary complications. However, for men with high-risk cancer, the potential advantages of treatment, including a greater probability of survival, may outweigh the risks.
The study also reignites the talk surrounding PSA screening, a straightforward blood test that may detect prostate cancer early. Although the PSA test can save lives by identifying cancer at an early stage, it may possibly also result in “false positives” (where the test incorrectly suggests cancer) or slow-growing cancers which will never be detected. Do not cause harm. These false alarms often result in treatments that include serious unwanted side effects — as this study clearly illustrates.
However, advances in technology are improving the best way prostate cancer is detected and managed. Tools like prostate-specific MRI scans and New biomarkers Can help distinguish aggressive cancers that need immediate treatment from less harmful cancers. These innovations are changing the landscape of prostate cancer care, allowing for more accurate and personalized approaches to screening and treatment.
This recent research provides a clearer picture of the trade-offs involved in prostate cancer treatment, making it easier for men to make informed decisions about their care. National and international guidelines increasingly emphasize the necessity for personalized approaches, ensuring that men understand the risks and advantages of screening and treatment.
By constructing on these insights, higher, safer strategies for managing prostate cancer could be developed, improving outcomes and preserving quality of life for thousands and thousands of men.