HIFU Scientifc Trial

 HIFU Scientific Trial:

HIFU, or High Intensity Focused Ultrasound, is a newer prostate cancer treatment that serves as an alternative to surgery or radiation. HIFU has been available in Europe for over a decade and in Canada since 2003. The first North American clinic opened in Toronto in 2005. The procedure is currently being evaluated by the FDA and is not yet available in the United States. The clinical data and research shows that HIFU is a safe and effective treatment for men with organ confined prostate cancer.

Research in Europe

In a clinical research study that began in 1995, 559 prostate cancer patients were studied by a number of well respected universities and treatment centers across Europe. Of those, 402 were treated using HIFU, High Intensity Focused Ultrasound as the first choice therapy. The remainder received Cry therapy or EBRT, External Beam Radiation Therapy.

All the patients studied were stage T1 or stage T2, meaning their cancers were confined to their prostate glands.

Of the 402 patients treated first with HIFU, 87.2% showed negative biopsies on tests conducted for up to 51 months after their treatments - meaning the treatment was effective in destroying the cancer.

Another study conducted at the University of Regensburg in Germany between 1997 and 2002 focused on 146 prostate cancer patients. Again all the patients were T1 or T2 and all received HIFU as the first choice treatment.

When PSA levels were tested 3 months after treatment, they were found to be higher. When tested after 22 months, 87% showed great improvement and 93.4% showed negative biopsies on tissue samples.

Study Observations

The study found that PSA levels initially spiked immediately following a HIFU treatment. When a second treatment was done, another rise in levels was observed but with lower peaks than the first. PSA levels were monitored for several months afterward and found to have dropped to normal levels and stabilized. Tissue biopsies showed no return of the cancer in 87.2% of the patients.

Negative Side Effects

Complications in patients after HIFU treatment were found to be consistent across Europe where these studies were carried out. Also consistent were the affirmations from patients treated that their quality of life was unchanged before and after treatment.

Side effects noted were as follows.

• Sexual impotence where cancer was found in the region where the nerve enters the prostate gland, 66%
• Sexual impotence where no cancer was found in the region where the nerve enters the prostate gland, 20%
• Blockages to the urethra, 8%
• Mild to moderate urinary incontinence, 5%
• Total urinary incontinence, <1%

There were no reported deaths due to HIFU. Impotent patients responded well to treatment with erectile dysfunction. All in all, there were fewer significant side effects with HIFU than other forms of treatment, including radiation and surgery.

Conclusions

 

HIFU Scientific TRial proved it to be a valid alternative treatment for patients not eligible for or who do not wish, or are unable, to undergo a surgical prostatectomy or radiation.

Another important finding was noted. Of the patients whose cancer inhabited half the prostate gland or less, biopsies were negative for up to 51 months after treatment.

More recent trials with over 400 patients were recently conducted in Canada at the Maple Leaf HIFU Clinic from 2003 - 2011. Results were similar showing that HIFU is a safe and effective treatment with fewer significant side effects for men with organ confined prostate cancer.

   Prostate Cancer Is Urinary Incontinence:

Prostate cancer is a serious condition and many males that deal with treatments for prostate will often end up dealing with incontinence. If caught early enough, prostate cancer is something that can easily be treated and often cured. With urinary incontinence Prostate cancer you have urine that escapes from the bladder often without warning or any control on your part. The problem with incontinence is that it is a very embarrassing condition to deal with and it can cause depression in a lot of people. The depression people suffer from can cause them to avoid social situations and can really hinder them from living their lives to the fullest. Since incontinence is such a private problem it is hard for you to be able to open up to anyone about it and to figure out what you can do for treatment.

Males dealing with prostate cancer often see issues with incontinence creep up because the treatments used will end up weakening the pelvic floor muscles. These muscles need to be strong in order to help support the bladder and to control urine loss. With cancer the muscles are going to be stretched out and weakened and the chemotherapy and cancer treatments only further the damage to these muscles. It can be years before you are able to gain control over these muscles again and to prevent issues with urinary incontinence. Depending upon the amount of damage that has been done, you may never be able to regain complete control over these muscles.

Other reasons why cancer patients see urinary incontinence arise is due to the drying effects of the cancer treatments. The body has natural fluids that are used to help the urethral tissues and cancer along with the treatments can easily dry it up, making it hard for the urethral tissue to contract and hold in the urine properly.

If you have had surgery on the prostate you are likely going to struggle with some urinary incontinence problems. Surgery damages the muscles and just about every nerve that signals to the brain when it is time to release the urine. When the nerves are damaged, there is not a lot of outlook for hope in the future as you will likely suffer from urge incontinence the rest of your life. Even the surgeries that are used to help repair the muscles used to hold in urine can further the damage. This is why it is so important to carefully weigh your decision on surgery and to make sure that it is absolutely necessary before you move forward with it.

Dealing with incontinence is going to be embarrassing to you but there are so many wonderful incontinence products for men on the market that it doesn't need to be embarrassing. These products allow you to maintain your dignity as you can wear them discreetly with your regular underwear or you can replace your underwear with adult diapers or incontinence underwear. Compared to the products in the past, the new incontinence supplies that are available are much easier to wear and others will not be able to notice that you use them.

Look for incontinence products that fit snugly to your body and make sure they are able to capture all of the urine loss that you encounter. If you are dealing with a lot of urine loss, you need to increase the absorbency of the adult diapers. If you have only minor urine loss you may be able to benefit from incontinence pads instead. Shop online for incontinence products as there is a larger variety for you to choose from and you can easily find the right product to help you manage urinary incontinence.

Prostate Cancer Surgery

Prostate Cancer Surgery Choices:

If you have been diagnosed with prostate cancer, the first thing you need to know is to relax. While the word cancer is emotionally charged and understandably causes distress, there is no need to make rushed decisions about prostate cancer surgery. Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers diagnosed in men with 1 in 6 being diagnosed in his lifetime, and only 1 in 34 die of it. In fact, most men will live full lives and never know that they had microscopic evidences of the disease. According the American Cancer Society, there are more than 1.8 million survivors of prostate cancer in the United States. Facing cancer is never easy, but there are many reasons for hope.

What are the Treatment Options?

There are 5 treatment options available once a patient is diagnosed:

1. Observation
2. Radiation Therapy
3. Cry therapy, or Freezing of the Cancerous Prostate
4. Hormone Therapy, Used in Conjunction with Radiation or Cry therapy.
5. Prostatectomy, or the Removal of the Prostate

Surgery and radiation therapy are the most common choices of these options.

Surgery for Prostate Cancer

Several things factor in to the course of treatment, such as age, general health, stage of cancer and whether or not the cancer is localized or the chances of leaving cancer behind. Many men are good candidates for a radical prostatectomy, a procedure used to remove the entire prostate and any nearby tissue thought to have cancer cells. If the chances of leaving cancerous cells behind are slim and when it's possible, your doctor may suggest a surgical technique which spares the nerves.

Surgery Options

Until recently, options in surgery were few and often included a large incision in the abdomen and significant recovery time. Today however, it can be done laparoscopic ally through several small incisions. Laparoscopic surgery may be performed either by hand, or through robot-assisted surgery. Robotic prostatectomy surgery uses cutting edge technology which gives the surgeon better visibility and an increased range of motion for a more thorough surgery and provides several benefits to the patient as well which include:

&bull; Faster Recovery Time
&bull; Less Pain
&bull; Less Risk of Infection
&bull; Less Blood Loss
&bull; Lower Occurrence of Incontinence and Impotence

Special Considerations

It is important to understand that surgery may not remove all of the cancer and additional therapies might be necessary. The surgery may also cause side effects such as incontinence and erectile problems, which may or may not improve over time.

With so many treatment options available today, men who are diagnosed with prostate cancer are fortunate. Be sure to discuss these options with your physician as you, along with your doctor, evaluate the best course of action.

Natural supplements

Natural Supplements Says New Studies:

University Studies on Prostate Health

With prostate cancer affecting increasing numbers of men in the United States, a great many university studies have been conducted into the causes of this potentially life-threatening disease. In the search for a cure, a number of these prostate cancer studies have come across several naturally-occurring plant extracts that appear to have beneficial effects on PSA levels and may be useful in promoting prostate health.

PSA, or Prostate Specific Antigen, is a substance produced by the prostate gland. While all men have small amounts of PSA in their blood stream, elevated levels have been associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia, or BPH, which is commonly referred to as enlarged prostate. In addition, high levels of PSA in the blood stream have been linked to an increased risk of prostate cancer, especially in men over 50.

Natural Supplements Demonstrate Potential Prostate Benefits:

The following naturally-occurring ingredients have exhibited beneficial properties, according to university laboratory studies on prostate tumor cells. Nutraceuticals containing these extracts may be indicated in supporting men's prostate health.

• White Button Mushroom Extract - The extract of this edible mushroom has been shown to successfully inhibit the growth of prostate cancer cells; the targeted cells subsequently experienced increased rates of apoptosis, leading to tumor death in vitro, as well as in vivo in experimental mice in a study performed at the Beckham Research Institute.

• Sang Huang Mushroom Extract - A recent Harvard Medical School study revealed that the extract of the Sang Huang mushroom, or phellinus lintels, effectively reduced the rate of prostate cancer cell growth in laboratory mice and caused tumor regression, or reduction in the size of the tumors.

• African Plum Tree Bark Extract - The bark of the African plum tree (pigeon Africana), which has been shown to be effective in treating enlarged prostate, has also exhibited favorable results in a university laboratory study into its effects on prostate cancer cells. This study, which was conducted by researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia, demonstrated that mice that were given an extract of pigeon Africana had a reduced incidence of prostate cancer.

Preventing prostate problems and other men's health issues depends in part on making the right lifestyle choices. Eating right, exercising regularly, maintaining a healthy body weight, minimizing alcohol consumption and avoiding the use of tobacco products are indicated for optimum men's health. The natural products mentioned in this article should be considered beneficial to men who have rising PSA, cancer diagnosis, or enlarged prostate.