Side Effects of Prostate Cancer Treatments
Doctors follow a careful plan when treating prostate cancer, although it is still very difficult to avoid or limit the side effects of prostate cancer treatment. Prostate cancer treatment also damages the body's healthy tissues and cells, causing unwanted and often serious side effects.
The side effects of prostate cancer treatment are determined on the type and measure of treatment. The possible side effects of prostate cancer treatment will be explained by the doctors and nurses who deliver your care. Ways to help relieve the symptoms may also be suggested during and after prostate cancer treatment. If you experience any side effects, it is important to let your medical professional know.
Side effects following Prostate Cancer Surgery
The most common side effect following prostate cancer surgery is pain. Most patients' pain is controlled with medicine during the first days after surgery, although they still experience some discomfort. Pain relief should be discussed with the doctor or nurse. Many patients feel tired and have little energy for a while. The length or time each patient takes to recover varies from patient to patient.
The surgical removal of the prostate can cause permanent impotence and often causes urinary incontinence. However, these effects are becoming less common today due to new tumour removal methods being used. These techniques are known as nerve-sparing surgery and help prevent any permanent injury to the nerves which control the opening to the bladder and erection. This type of surgery is usually very successful and the urinary incontinence and impotence are only temporary. Since prostatectomy surgery prevents a man producing semen, their orgasms are dry.
Side Effects following Prostate Cancer Radiation Therapy
Radiation therapy has been known to cause patients severe fatigue. Great importance is placed upon resting, although doctors often advise those patients who have undergone radiation therapy to stay as active as possible. It is quite usual during external radiation therapy for the skin in the affected area to become dry, red and tender.
Hair loss in the pelvic area is also a common side effect of radiation therapy for this type of cancer. This can be in the temporary or permanent form, mainly depending on the type of radiation performed.
Radiation therapy can cause impotence, although this does not occur as often with radiation that has been performed internally. The nerves that control the erection are also less likely to become damaged through internal radiation.
Side effects following Prostate Cancer Hormone Therapy
Hormone therapy such as estrogen, Orchiectomy, LHRH agonist has often been found to cause side effects such as decline is sexual desire, hot flashes and impotence. LHRH agonist tends to increase the growth of tumours and make a man's symptoms worse. This problem is known as 'tumour flare' and is temporary. The drug does, however cause a man's testosterone levels to fall and without testosterone, the growth of tumours slow down and the condition improves.
Oestrogen or Antiandrogen therapy often causes vomiting, nausea, swelling o tenderness or the breasts. Oestrogen is now used less in men as it increases the risk of problems with the heart.
Prostate cancer news on the Web
Prostate Cancer: The Disease’s ‘Cell of Origin’ Found
Prostate cancer affects hundreds of thousands of men in the US every year, causing tens of thousands of deaths. A recent finding by researchers at the University of California Los Angeles may have made a discovery that will change that. The Prostate Cancer Foundation reports that the scientists at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have found the ‘cell of origin’, which is the type of ... |
Prostate Cancer: A New Ground Zero
A type of prostate cell that has been largely ignored by cancer researchers can, in fact, trigger malignant prostate cancer, according to new studies by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) scientists and their colleagues. HHMI researcher Owen N. Witte and his colleagues at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) found that the somewhat overlooked prostate basal cell can spawn tumors ... |
Prostate Cancer 'Cell of Origin' Identified
For researchers, a key to studying any cancer is finding its "cell of origin." Now scientists at the University of California at Los Angeles say they've found just that -- a specific type of cell that gives rise to prostate cancer. |
Prostate cancer 'cell' identified
A cell that could be the "mother" of all prostate tumours has been identified by scientists. Samples of the "basal" cells taken from healthy human prostate tissue triggered cancer in mice with suppressed immune systems. |
Canines Used To Sniff Out Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, with about 1 in 6 affected. Like so many other cancers, catching it early is the key. Now, doctors have discovered a new means of early detection using dogs. |
Cancer Vaccine: 4 Months of Life Worth $100K?
Prostate cancer vaccine, Provenge, adds 4 months to life, at a pricetag of 100K. The first-ever approved cancer vaccine, Provenge offers hope to men with advanced prostate cancer, but the high cost of this new treatment raises healthcare policy questions. Prostate cancer - Sipuleucel-T - Cancer - Cancer vaccine - Health |
Aggressive prostate cancer tend to retain denser bones
Men who develop prostate cancer, especially the more aggressive and dangerous forms that spread throughout the body, tend to retain denser bones as they age than men who stay free of the disease, suggests new research from Johns Hopkins and the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health. |
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