Why Monitoring is Sometimes Recommended with Prostate Cancer

A positive diagnosis of prostate cancer doesn’t always mean that a man will face surgery, chemotherapy, radiation of other more aggressive forms of treatment. Sometimes doctors prefer taking a wait-and-see approach instead.

While that might seem to contradict conventional wisdom that often dictates cancer be immediately ferreted out and destroyed if it’s detected, there are times when surveillance is enough at least for prostate cancer. Here are a few of the reasons why this approach may be recommended by a doctor:

• The cancer in question is in an early stage and it’s a slow-growing form – While not always, prostate cancer is often rather slow to progress. That means a careful protocol of surveillance may serve to spare patients from the sometimes harsh realities of treatment. Should the cancer be found in an early stage and deemed likely to progress slowly, a doctor may recommend holding off on treatment while watching to make sure the tumor doesn’t advance rapidly.
• The cancer is detected late in life – Prostate cancer is often diagnosed later in a man’s life. If this is the case, a doctor may deem it more beneficial to hold off on treatment by monitoring instead. This can help preserve a man’s quality of life by eliminating the need for treatments should the cancer not pose any major threat of progressing or spreading.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in American men. Even so, this disease is considered highly treatable in most cases. The American Cancer Society estimates there are some 2.9 men alive who have been diagnosed with the disease and are still alive today.

If prostate cancer is the diagnoses, men are urged to review all their options for treatment carefully with a licensed oncologist. A wait-and-see approach may not always be the best course of action, depending on a man’s age, the stage of cancer and the likelihood of progression.

About Author

Dr. Echt and his team at the Prostate Seed Institute offer the most highly sophisticated methods of radiation therapy available in the United States, equal to that found in major medical center and academic settings. These include prostate seed implantation, high dose radiation implants, and external beam radiation with image-guided and intensity-modulated (IGRT and IMRT) capabilities.

The Prostate Seed Institute is a non-surgical prostate cancer care center. The founder of the Prostate Seed Institute, Dr. Gregory Echt, is a radiation oncologist who specializes in using radiation to treat cancer.