PROSTATE CANCER BREAKTHROUGHS 2014
NEW TESTS, NEW TREATMENTS, BETTER OPTIONS
A Step-by-Step Guide to Cutting-Edge Diagnostic Tests and 12 Medically-Proven Treatments
A quiet revolution in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer is underway, but many doctors and most men diagnosed with prostate cancer have not heard about it.
Instead, today men are quickly dispatched for aggressive treatment such as prostate surgery or radiation, both of which can affect men’s sexual or bladder competence permanently. The numbers are startling: 85% of men diagnosed with prostate cancer get surgery or radiation, yet only 15% actually need it.
I was diagnosed with prostate cancer in December 2011. Steered immediately toward radical treatment, the doctors said, “Your PSA is very high and your biopsy is positive, so your only alternatives are surgery or radiation.” Luckily I heard about the new methods and was able to avoid these aggressive treatments.
Yes, my PSA was high: 15 ng/ml. Normal is 4 or less. And my biopsy was positive, although the cancer is low grade. Just like me, surgery or radiation is what you likely will be told you need if your PSA is elevated even a little and your biopsy is positive for cancer.
There are better tests today that can change the direction of treatment: color doppler ultrasound and, most of all, the advanced, prostate specific MRI.
Until now, MRIs were not helpful because the prostate is situated so deep in the pelvis, the pictures were unclear and prostate cancer could not be identified. Now, the new MRI is highly accurate in identifying where the prostate cancer is and where it isn’t.
This made all of the difference for me. I learned that my prostate cancer was the size of the tip of my pinky in size, and located in a relatively safe area of the prostate with no sign whatsoever of spread. And because my cancer is slow growing, and my high PSA is likely from previous prostate infections, I am now doing active surveillance with my doctor. We are following the PSA levels and repeated the MRI in November. So far, so good.
In the past and still today, doctors have been very aggressive in treatment prostate cancer. They had little choice because there were no tests to identify the location and size of a man’s prostate cancer. So to avoid under treating men and allowing a cancer to spread, doctors recommended radical treatment for most men. This approach remains the mainstay.
The revolution in prostate cancer care that has benefited me and other men so much remains unknown to most men diagnosed with prostate cancer today. Change happens slowly in medical care.
It will probably take a decade for the advance, prostate specific MRI to become the standard of care.
Prostate Cancer Breakthroughs includes …”vital new information for men diagnosed with prostate cancer!”
George Johnson, Director of the award winning Informed Prostate Cancer Support Group in San Diego, named the best independent prostate cancer group in California.
“I have had treatment for prostate cancer and have been thru the mill. If I were going to go through the process again, I would start with Dr Cohen’s book.”
P.C., Amazon.com Reviews.
See other excellent reviews of the book at Amazon.com.
Prostate Cancer Breakthroughs 2014 is the first and only book that focuses on the new tests & treatments revolutionizing prostate cancer care today.
Yet most doctors and patients are still not aware of the many breakthroughs being used at a few top cancer centers in the U.S. So tens of thousands of men diagnosed with prostate cancer get surgery or radiation they don’t need with their serious, often permanent side effects. In a step-by-step manner, Prostate Cancer Breakthroughs describes the new methods of diagnosis & treatment and where to obtain them.
In this highly-praised book, you will discover:
- Why 85% of the surgery or radiation done for prostate cancer is unnecessary.
- Why a high PSA test does not necessarily mean cancer.
- How to tell if you really need a biopsy (many men don’t).
- Why a targeted biopsy is better and safer, and where to get one.
- Why the new, prostate DCE-MRI is the key to accurate diagnosis & treatment.
- The new carbon-11 PET/CT scan for the early identification of metastases.
- Genetic tests available now for improving diagnosis & treatment accuracy.
Prostate Cancer Breakthroughs addresses:
- Why men over 50 should continue to get an annual PSA test.
- The tests you really need for a full picture of your prostate cancer.
- New treatment options your doctor may not tell you about.
This book will also help you determine:
- If you truly need surgery or radiation therapy (some men do, many men don’t!)
- If you are a candidate for focal treatment or active surveillance.
- If medication treatment instead of surgery/radiation is right for you.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: JAY S. COHEN, M.D.
Nationally respected for his groundbreaking work on reducing the epidemic of medication side effects, Dr. Cohen, a prostate cancer survivor, now informs men of new breakthroughs in diagnosis & treatment revolutionizing prostate cancer care today. These methods, available at only a few medical centers, can allow tens of thousands of men each year to avoid unnecessary surgery or radiation. Because many doctors are not aware of the new advances, Prostate Cancer Breakthroughs 2014 is essential reading for all men over 50 and the women who love them.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction: A Better Approach to Prostate Cancer
Section 1: A Newer, More Accurate Diagnostic Approach
- Step 1: Why You Should Get an Annual PSA Test
- Step 2: Blind Biopsy, Targeted Biopsy, or No Biopsy?
- Step 3: Assessing Your Findings
- Step 4: The Voice of Experience: The Support Group
- Step 5: The New, Contrast-Enhanced Prostate MRI (DCE-MRI)
- Step 6: The Color Doppler Ultrasound
- Step 7: Genetic Diagnostic Tests that Are Available Now
- Step 8: The New, Carbon-11 PET/CT Scans for Metastatic Prostate Cancer
Section 2: A Broader Range of Options for Treating Prostate Cancer
- A. Aggressive Therapies
- Option 1: Prostatectomy
- Options 2-5: Radiation Therapies – IMRT, SBRT (CyberKnife), Proton, Brachytherapy
- B. Focal Therapies
- Option 6: Cryotherapy
- Option: 7: Focal Laser Ablation (FLA)
- Option 8: High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU)
- C. Non-Invasive Therapies
- Option 9: Medication Therapy
- Option 10: Active Surveillance: More Than Watching and Waiting
- Option 11: Alpharadin for Bone Metastases
- Option 12: Too Good to be True? Proscar (Finasteride) to Prevent Prostate Cancer
Section 3: Weighing the Evidence and Making a Decision
- Step 9: What Does Your Data Say?
- Step 10: 30 Questions to Ask Your Doctor
Section 4: Conclusion
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