Why Prostate Cancer Patients Need Personalised Treatment
A key feature of our treatment programmes at Amethyst Healthcare is to offer personalised care that is tailored to the needs of each patient. In rejecting a one-size-fits-all approach, we aim to achieve better patient outcomes and to acknowledge that everyone is different.
This is something that may be particularly appreciated by those who have found that other providers have fallen short in this regard. Not only does that mean that the treatment offered may not be the best option, but it can also mean individuals are being given a treatment based not on what might be best for them, but on presuppositions about what is best.
A good example of where this can occur with highly negative results is the area of prostate cancer. The diagnosis of this disease is not in itself a prognosis of how it will develop, as tumours vary widely in how aggressive they are. This alone is a good reason to personalise treatments according to individual patient circumstances.
Prostate Cancer Treatment Concerns Raised
However, this is not what always transpires. For example, the charity Prostate Cancer UK has warned that in Britain, as many as 5,000 men a year are given excessive treatment for their condition. This can mean they unnecessarily suffer side effects like erectile dysfunction or incontinence.
The charity held the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), a state-run body that issues treatment guidelines, to account for providing obsolete guidance.
Its key point is that for a quarter of patients, the tumour grows so slowly that it is not going to manifest itself harmfully in their lifetimes, making the treatment they may be given unnecessary.
Instead, such patients may benefit from close monitoring, with further treatment only required if the cancer growth accelerates.
This may also be the case for other similar guidelines in healthcare systems around the world, as well as in the UK.
Speaking to the Independent newspaper, professor of urology at the University of Cambridge Vincent Gnanapragasam said the NICE guidelines “have created a deeply concerning wild west on how surveillance is implemented by different health care teams.”
He added: “This inconsistency is resulting in a lack of confidence from patients in surveillance, who may instead opt to have treatment they may not have ever needed, risking harmful side effects.”
The Search For Personalised Prostate Care
The issues raised with NICE affect Britons using the state-run National Health Service, but many prostate cancer patients from other countries might find they have similar problems with treatments being implemented that are not ideal for their individual conditions. This may be applicable both in state and private healthcare systems across Europe.
Wherever you are located, you can do better than this. Radiotherapy should only be given when required because of its various side effects.
For cases where you do need radiotherapy, we can still offer treatment that is geared up to individual needs, as there are differing ways of using radiotherapy for prostate cancer, as well as multiple options for combining it with other treatments, such as surgery and chemotherapy.
Radiotherapy Options
Radiotherapy for prostate cancer can be external or internal. The first of these involves external beam therapy, which is commonly used when the cancer is confined to the prostate itself.
This can involve the use of stereotactic radiotherapy to direct very precise beams of strong radiation at the tumour, shrinking it while minimising radiation exposure for surrounding healthy tissue.
Internal radiation therapy, known as brachytherapy, involves placing a very small implant of radioactive material in the prostate. In some cases, this is temporary and in others permanent, depending on patient needs.
Like external beam radiotherapy, brachytherapy is used when the cancer is confined to the prostate gland. Metastatic prostate cancer, defined as when the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, may be treated by radiopharmaceutical means. This usually only occurs as a treatment for stage 4 cancer.
Taking an Individual Approach
These variations, combined with the different surgical, chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy options (among others) go to highlight that there are many ways to treat prostate cancer and it makes little sense to make presumptions of what is best for each patient without considering their circumstances.
Among the variations are factors such as age and general health, while some people will respond better to some treatments (such as chemotherapy) than others. Hormonal therapy can help in some cases but not others.
All of these factors will play a role in the prostate cancer treatment we can offer you at Amethyst Radiotherapy. But we will also treat you as an individual person, discussing your treatment options, explaining the benefits and side effects, and helping you to feel a part of the decision-making process.
In doing so, you should get the best care available, which can improve your prospects for a better outcome.
Learn more about our advanced radiotherapy treatments for different cancers on the Amethyst Group website.
