Prostate Cancer Treatment Options and Surgeries

Posted on: Mar 1, 2024 | 3 mins | Written by: HDFC ERGO Team

Prostate Cancer Treatment Options and Surgeries

Prostate cancer is one of the most common types of carcinoma in men. Although the cancer starts in the prostate gland, it can spread to the lymph nodes, bones and other surrounding areas. There are five stages of prostate cancer, and the treatment depends on the stage of the condition, the health of the patient, and the possible side effects of the treatment.

Surgery is the best treatment option for early-stage cancer that has not spread outside the prostate gland. However, advanced cases may require a combination of treatments to prevent malignant cells from multiplying further. Prostate cancer is a life-threatening condition, and its treatment is expensive. Having a cancer insurance as a precautionary measure for those uncertain times is a good idea. This health insurance policy will protect you against different forms of cancer and prevent financial setbacks. Let’s take a look at the advanced prostate cancer treatment options that can slow down the spread of cancerous cells and ease associated symptoms.

1. Endocrine therapy for prostate cancer

Endocrine therapy, also called hormone therapy, androgen suppression therapy or androgen ablation, is the first-line treatment for advanced prostate cancer. This treatment method focuses on reducing testosterone levels in the body. Testosterone is a male hormone that stimulates the development of male characteristics and performs other important functions. However, high levels of testosterone promote the growth of harmful cells in the prostate.

Endocrine therapy helps suppress the activity of the testosterone hormone, thus reducing the tumour size. This therapy also helps reduce levels of PSA or prostate-specific antigen. An elevated PSA level can be a sign of prostate cancer. Some common side effects of endocrine therapy are heart conditions, bone loss or weakened bones, fatigue, weight gain and decreased sexual desire.

2. Chemotherapy for prostate cancer

Although endocrine therapy is an important and effective treatment, many people with advanced prostate cancer stop responding to it. This is when certain chemotherapy drugs are injected into the body. These drugs stop the cancer cells from increasing in number, thus preventing the tumour from growing further.

Some side effects of chemotherapy are loss of appetite, hair loss, anaemia, tiredness, muscle pain and soreness, nausea and vomiting.

3. Provenge for Advanced Prostate Cancer

Provenge or Sipuleucel-T is a personalised immunotherapy used for treating advanced prostate cancer. It is prepared from the immune cells of the patient to strengthen the immune system so that it destroys the harmful cells in the prostate. This treatment is used when the cancerous cells have spread outside the prostate gland, and the patient is not responding to hormone therapy.

Provenge is a therapeutic cancer vaccine created by collecting the immune cells from the patient’s blood. These cells, which are called antigen-presenting cells (APCs), are exposed to a protein (prostatic acid phosphatase or PAP) found in cancer cells. This helps the APCs recognise the PAP antigen for targeting cancerous cells. The activated APCs are then infused back into the patient’s body, where it interacts with the immune system and stimulates the T-cells (a type of white blood cell) to recognise and destroy the cancerous cells in the prostate.

The treatment has side effects, such as tiredness, nausea, light-headedness, headaches, vision problems, etc.

4. Endocrine Drugs for Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer patients who opt for drug therapy are given hormone-related drugs to check the growth of harmful cells in the prostate. The following drugs are approved for treating advanced prostate cancer —

• Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) analogs: These drugs are given to check the production of the testosterone hormone in the body. The analogs are either injected into the patient’s body or placed as small implants under the skin. They cause a temporary tumour flare before decreasing testosterone levels in the prostate.

LHRH analogs can trigger certain conditions, such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and osteoporosis.

• Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) antagonists: These drugs also help reduce testosterone levels in the body. They are more effective than LHRH analogs and don’t cause a tumour flare like the former.

Degarelix, the LHRH antagonist or drug used for advanced prostate cancer, helps slow down the progression of the condition. However, it may cause a few side effects, such as weight changes, tiredness, dizziness, pain in the back/joints, increased sweating, and some reactions on the injection site, such as pain, redness, swelling and itching.

• Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) receptor antagonist: This hormone therapy drug reduces the production of testosterone in the body to check the growth of cancer cells. Relugolix is the first FDA-approved GnRH receptor antagonist for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer.

Some side effects of this medication are pain in the joints and muscles, weight gain, gastrointestinal discomfort, and tiredness.

5. Antiandrogens for prostate cancer

Antiandrogens are drugs that help block the effect of testosterone in the body. This treatment is used along with LHRH analogs or surgical orchidectomy to get rid of the cancer cells completely. While other forms of prostate cancer treatments and hormone therapies block about 90% of the testosterone hormone present in the body, antiandrogens help destroy the remaining 10%. Some commonly used antiandrogens include abiraterone acetate, biclutamide, flutamide, and apalutamide. Antiandrogens are normally used with other forms of hormone therapies to check the growth of prostate cancer cells. It is also used when LHRH analogs cause a temporary testosterone flare in the body, as these drugs can help ease the symptoms of the flare.

Some common side effects of this treatment are fatigue, headaches, joint pain, nausea, liver problems, and heartburn.

6. Combination of radiation and endocrine therapy

This treatment is usually prescribed for patients with intermediate or high-risk prostate cancer. Such patients are given hormone therapy along with external beam radiation therapy. This combination reportedly is more effective in lowering testosterone levels in the body and slowing down prostate cancer. Some people are also given radiation in the form of radiopharmaceutical drugs. These drugs are also equally effective in controlling the spread of cancerous cells.

Radium-223 is an approved drug for treating advanced prostate cancer in men, particularly when the cancer has spread only to the bones. This intravenous drug binds itself to the minerals present in the bones and releases radiation to shrink or destroy bone tumours. Other drugs commonly used for the treatment are Strontium-89 Chloride and Samarium-153.

Some side effects of this treatment are gastrointestinal discomfort, nausea, vomiting, tiredness, etc.

7. Secondary endocrine therapy

Hormone therapy is quite effective in reducing testosterone levels in the body. However, at some point, hormone therapy fails to deliver the desired results, causing the PSA or prostate-specific antigen levels to rise in the body. Therefore, to reduce testosterone levels again, doctors usually make certain changes to the ongoing hormone therapy. This is termed secondary endocrine therapy or secondary hormone therapy. In most cases, doctors either add a new drug to the treatment plan or stop the use of one in combination therapy.

Conclusion

These are the advanced surgeries and treatments for prostate cancer. In patients with advanced or recurrent prostate cancer, doctors suggest removing the entire prostate gland. Since prostate cancer may require long-term treatment, having cancer insurance can help ease your financial worries. If you get diagnosed with cancer in the prostate or any other body part, the insurer will offer a lump sum benefit that will help you cover your medical bills and other day-to-day expenses.

Disclaimer The above information is for illustrative purposes only. For more details, please refer to policy wordings and prospectus before concluding the sales.

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