Cryosurgery shows promise as primary treatment in high-risk PCa

Cryosurgery appears to be a promising primary treatment for prostate cancer, even in men with high-risk features, according to results of a 4-year study published in Cancer (2005; 103:1625-30).

"The progression of data supporting the cryosurgery option as a primary means of treating prostate cancer, even in a high-risk patient population or as a secondary or 'salvage' treatment for men who have failed radiation therapy, continues to accelerate as use of the procedure increases in the urology community," said principal author Aaron Katz, MD, of Presbyterian Hospital, New York.

Dr. Katz and colleagues studied 65 high-risk prostate cancer patients who elected to have cryosurgery as their primary therapy between 1998 and 2002. After the procedure, the patients were monitored every 3 months via physical examinations and PSA screening. Radiologic imaging was used in some cases.

After a median follow-up of 35 months, the PSA biochemical disease-free survival rate was 83% of patients, according to criteria of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology. Overall survival at the time of publication was 100%.

The authors added that longer follow-up is necessary to determine cryosurgery's effectiveness as a primary treatment in high-risk patients.