What are the chances of a cure for prostate cancer?
introduction
Prostate cancer is the most common tumor disease in men but only the third most common cause of cancer death in men, which makes it clear that although it is to be taken extremely seriously, it is also cured in many cases or does not lead to death due to its slow growth. Around 15 percent of men will develop prostate cancer at some point in their lives, usually around the age of 70. Age as the strongest risk factor plays the leading role in the development. In addition, sick family members and the place of residence are to be named as risk factors.
What are the general chances of recovery?
In general, the chances of recovery are quite good. This type of cancer is characterized by slow growth and can therefore often be discovered and cured at an early stage. As with most cancers, the early forms are particularly good at treating and therefore curing them. If the cancerous tissue is not yet found outside the prostate, radiation, hormone therapy, and / or surgery to remove the organ can cure the disease. In the case of very small ulcers, or those if the patient is very old, usually nothing is done and only the spread is checked at regular intervals. The aim here is not to treat all those prostate tumors that are unlikely to lead to death. This means that the ultimate goal in the treatment of prostate cancer is not necessarily the cure at any point in time, but quality of life and life expectancy.
Read more about this: Therapy of prostate cancer
What are the chances of a cure if you detect prostate cancer in the early stages?
In the early stages, the chances of a cure or the chances that the cancer will never cause symptoms are particularly good. By frequently checking the spread of the cancerous tissue, in the case of very small ulcers, the point in time at which therapy no longer exceeds the risks of the disease is determined. From then on, the entire organ and thus the entire cancerous tissue can be removed in one operation or the cancer cells can be caused to disintegrate using radiation and thus lead to healing. In addition, hormone therapy is often administered to reduce the influence of testosterone on the tissue. Most patients are cured after such early form of prostate cancer therapy and have a similar life expectancy as those without the disease.
You might also be interested in this topic:
- Prostate cancer screening
- Hormone therapy for prostate cancer
What are the chances of recovery after an operation?
Often the prostate is removed with an operation, which usually removes all of the cancer from the body. Therefore, the chances of recovery after an operation are very good. After such an operation, the possible fate of cancerous tissue in the body is examined using the PSA value and X-ray procedures, and a decision is therefore 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 with additional radiation to an operation. Nevertheless, the success of the operation should be checked at short intervals.
What are the chances of recovery after chemotherapy?
Chemotherapy is rarely used in prostate cancer and only in the event that it has already metastasized in the body. Unfortunately, this results in only a small chance of a cure for prostate cancer after chemotherapy. Instead of curing the patient, the goal is now to slow down the progression of the cancer. For this purpose, the growth-promoting influence of testosterone on the cancerous tissue is suppressed with hormone therapy, and the quality of life is improved with the help of radiation and pain therapy.
Further information: Chemotherapy side effects
What are the chances of recovery after radiation treatment?
This question is difficult to answer without further ado, because radiation therapy is used both in very small and less aggressive stages of prostate cancer and in metastatic cancer. Thus, the chances of recovery cannot be determined from the therapy alone. Further information on the spread and nature of prostate cancer is required. In general, however, radiation is a very effective measure to cure cancer.
You might also be interested in this topic: Behavior during radiation therapy
What are the chances of recovery from metastases?
If metastases are already present, the patient will usually no longer be cured from prostate cancer. In this case, hormone therapy as well as chemotherapy and radiation are used to keep the cancer in check, thus slowing down the progression as much as possible. The ultimate goal in this case is to extend life and at the same time improve quality of life. Very often, if distant metastases are present, immediate therapy is not initiated, but only intervened in the course of the disease if symptoms occur or the progression continues to increase significantly. This scheme is called "Watchful Waiting", in German something like "observing waiting" and is possible with prostate cancer because it often progresses slowly.
Also read:
- What is the terminal stage of prostate cancer?
- Metastases in prostate cancer
What negatively affects the chances of recovery?
The chances of recovery are generally negatively influenced by a large and advanced tumor of the prostate. In detail, this means that prostate cancer that occupies large parts of the prostate, may already grow outside the prostate and may have metastases in the body, has poorer chances of recovery. Another factor that negatively affects the chances of a cure for prostate cancer are severely altered cancer cells. They are often aggressive, thus rapidly growing, and are more likely to spread in the body than slightly changed cancer cells. A high patient age is also one of the more negatively influencing chances of recovery. Also because in this case not healing but slowing down the spread is more sensible as a therapeutic goal.
What positively influences the chances of recovery?
The chances of recovery are thus, contrary to the above, positively influenced by a low tumor stage of prostate cancer. This includes a small tumor that grows within the organ, has not distributed any cells in the adjacent tissue outside or further away in the body and is only slightly changed in contrast to healthy tissue. It is therefore only slightly aggressive and easy to treat. In addition, a low patient age often has a positive effect on the chances of recovery. It was also shown that a diet rich in tomatoes has a positive influence on the chances of recovery. The most decisive and therefore most important factor, however, is to use targeted therapy against prostate cancer. This includes the complete surgical removal of the affected prostate, including any affected lymph nodes. Radiation is also often used to kill cancer cells that have remained in the body. It is sometimes given in combination with hormone therapy. The preventive medical check-up also leads to better chances by detecting prostate cancer early.
