What are the chances of recovery after surgery?
Often, the prostate is removed with an operation and thus usually all the cancer is removed from the body. Therefore the chances of recovery after surgery are very good. After such an operation, the possible presence of cancerous tissue in the body is examined by means of the PSA value and X-ray procedures, and thus a decision is made as to whether additional radiation is helpful. Even if small amounts of cancer remain in the body, the chances are high that the cancer can be cured by additional radiation after surgery. Nevertheless, the success of the operation should be monitored at close intervals.
What are the chances of recovery after chemotherapy?
Chemotherapy is rarely used for prostate cancer and only in cases where the cancer has already metastasized to the body. Unfortunately, this means that there is only a small chance of healing prostate cancer after chemotherapy. Instead of curing the patient, the goal now is to slow down the progression of the cancer. For this purpose, hormone therapy is used to suppress the growth-promoting influence of testosterone on the cancerous tissue, and radiation and pain therapy are used to improve the quality of life.
What are the chances of recovery after radiation therapy?
This question is so difficult to answer without further ado, because the therapy method of radiation is used for very small and less aggressive stages of prostate cancer as well as for metastatic cancer. Thus, the chances of cure cannot be determined by the therapy alone. Further information about the spread and nature of prostate cancer is needed. In general, however, radiation therapy is a very effective measure to cure the cancer.
What are the chances of cure for metastases?
If metastases are already present, the patient is usually no longer cured of prostate cancer.In this case, hormone therapy as well as chemotherapy and radiation are used to control the cancer and slow its progress as much as possible. The ultimate goal in this case is thus a prolongation of life and at the same time an improvement in the quality of life. Very often, in the presence of distant metastases, no immediate therapy is initiated, but rather the course of the disease is only intervened when symptoms occur or the progress continues to increase strongly. This scheme is called “Watchful Waiting” and is possible in prostate cancer, as it often progresses only slowly.
