Local Clinical Trials for Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer has no or very minimal symptoms. That's why prevention is the best defense. The key thing is to have a PSA, which is a blood test, every year. It's recommended men start yearly PSA tests by the age of 50, or 40 if there's a family history.
There are three different categories of prostate cancer: low, intermediate, and high.
Radiation Oncologist Dr. Hasan Murshed says the good thing is if it can be caught early prostate cancer patients have multiple treatment options. But if the cancer is advanced, the only options are radiation treatment or hormone treatment.
Now the Bay Regional Cancer Center is conducting clinical trials combining the two. The first is for intermediate risk prostate cancer patients who normally only get radiation alone.
Dr. Murshed says, "We're testing if adding a short course of hormone with radiation would improve the outcome."
We know from studies that high risk prostate cancer patients getting radiation and hormone benefit from this type of treatment.
The other trial is for patients who've had prostectomy and now have as rising PSA. That means after surgery they had a bio chemical failure from the prostate cancer standard treatment, radiation therapy.
Dr. Murshed says, "We're testing again to see if adding a short course of hormone treatment would improve in patients. These are national studies available at the cancer center so you don't have to travel to M.D.Anderson or Birmingham. We can offer those cutting edge treatments right here in Panama City."
For more information just call Dr. Murshed at 747-6972.
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