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New guidelines for treating prostate cancer released
HOUSTON--Three physicians at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center are major architects of new prostate cancer detection and treatment guidelines released today (June 23) by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and the American Cancer Society.
With these new guidelines, prostate cancer patients have access to information about treatment options offered at the nation's leading cancer centers. Originally devised for cancer specialists by the NCCN, the guidelines are translated into easy-to-understand terms for the general public by the ACS.
The public may access the guidelines via M. D. Anderson's web site at www.mdanderson.org, the NCCN site at www.nccn.org and the ACS site at www.cancer.org.
The guidelines incorporate the experience of NCCN member institutions, including M. D. Anderson, and offer prostate cancer patients and their families reliable, specific and easy-to-understand information needed to make well-informed decisions about early diagnosis and treatment.
The NCCN is a coalition of 17 prestigious cancer centers nationwide that was created in 1995 to bring together the knowledge and expertise of physicians at member centers and make this information available to the general public. The American Cancer Society is the nationwide, community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem.
"Prostate cancer patients now have easy access to current expert information with these screening and treatment guidelines from the NCCN and the ACS," said Dr. Rodger Winn, associate professor of community oncology at M. D. and one of three M. D. Anderson physicians who led development of the new guidelines. "The guidelines help patients understand how medical knowledge is applied in a systematic manner so they can work knowledgeably with their physician to determine their best diagnosis and treatment options."
The other M. D. Anderson physicians who participated in writing the guidelines were Dr. Christopher J. Logothetis, chairman of the Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, and Dr. Richard Babaian, professor of urology.
Highlights of the guidelines include:
o The Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test, the blood test that can detect prostate cancer in the earliest stages, should be offered annually to men 50 and older with a life expectancy of 10 years and to younger men at high risk for prostate cancer.
o The Digital Rectal Exam (DRE), a test that helps to predict whether the cancer has moved beyond the prostate, should be performed on men who are 50 and older and to younger men at high risk for prostate cancer.
o African-Americans, who are known to be at an increased risk of prostate cancer, should be offered an annual DRE and should consider an annual PSA.
o A biopsy is recommended for all men who have a PSA test result above 10.
o The options for primary management of prostate cancer are surgery, radiation therapy or close observation. Treatment decisions should be based on the aggressiveness of the tumor, the stage of the tumor and the life expectancy of the patient. Only thorough discussion between physician and patient of all three choices can lead to an optimal treatment decision.
o Advanced prostate cancer is best managed with hormone therapy and, eventually, chemotherapy.
o Radiation therapy can include external and implanted seeds, a procedure known as brachytherapy. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer occurring in American men. The ACS estimates that about 179,300 news cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in the United States and 37,000 men will die of the disease in 1999.
M. D. Anderson currently has numerous major studies underway for prostate cancer, including gene therapies. The center soon will launch a major national study on the effectiveness of hormone therapy in prostate cancer patients who undergo prostatectomy surgery (removal of the prostate) and are at high risk for recurrence of the disease.
6/23/99
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