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Hormone therapy vs surgery – what’s best for elderly low-risk prostate cancer?

Lana W
  • 1 reply
  • 43 subscribers
  • 199 views

Hello,

My father (78 years old) was recently diagnosed with stage 3 prostate cancer, with local spread to the seminal vesicles. He also has a history of heart problems, including a past heart attack.

Despite the fact that his cancer appears to be low-risk (Gleason score 6 and PSA of 5.3), doctors are strongly recommending radical prostatectomy.

My question is:
Can a patient in this situation choose hormone therapy alone instead of surgery, especially considering his age and cardiac history?

Thank you very much for any advice or shared experiences.

Best regards,

Alex

  • Dear Alex,

    Thanks for getting in touch. My name is Lindsey and I am one of the Cancer Information Nurse Specialists on the Macmillan Support Line.

    Thanks for contacting the online community about your father. It is important that you feel comfortable that he is getting treatment that is right for him.

    A Radical Prostatectomy is one of the treatments that can be used for locally advanced prostate cancer. Other treatments that can be used to treat prostate cancer include radiotherapy (external beam radiotherapy and brachytherapy), hormone therapy and watchful waiting.

    Your father has the right to receive care and treatment that is appropriate for him, meets his needs and reflects his preferences.

    He can talk his options through with his specialist nurse and consultant. It’s important that he understands which treatments are suitable for him and would be helpful to prepare questions to ask in advance. These could include asking:

    • Which treatment would be appropriate?
    • How effective would each treatment be?
    • What are the advantages and disadvantages of each treatment? Taking into account his heart history.

    I hope that this information is helpful. If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch again. We often find that we can help people more by talking to them directly. You can speak to one of our experienced cancer information nurses by calling our free helpline on 0808 808 00 00 or by Webchat seven days a week 8am – 8pm. You can also email us back and we aim to reply within two working days.

    Kind Regards,

    Lindsey

    Ref: Lrob/TT

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