Thousands of men with prostate cancer get risky treatment they don’t need

  They look like glowing jade necklaces of such unearthly brilliance they could be a Ming emperor’s. But if Dr. Gerardo Fernandez is right, the green fluorescent images of prostate cells could be even more valuable, at least to the thousands of men every year who unnecessarily undergo aggressive treatment for prostate cancer. That’s because the glimmering images promise to show...Read More

Prostate Cancer Treatments — Facts and Lies

  Although “treatments” in alternative and complementary medicine lack proof of benefit, some common healthcare practices also lack scientific evidence for benefit despite being covered by health insurance, marketed as FDA “approved” and/or as “standard of care”. In fact, there is no greater medical arena of orchestrated deception than that concerning prostate cancer diagnosis and treatment. Are all Prostate Cancers Deadly? No. Not all...Read More

Epidemic of overtreatment of prostate cancer must stop

  Prostate cancer is a significant disease in the U.S. In 2014 alone, the American Cancer Society estimates, 233,000 men will be diagnosed and 29,480 will die of it. This week, two important studies showing how prostate cancer is treated in the U.S. were published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine. The findings should cause those of us who treat...Read More

Radiation Used in Too Many Men With Indolent Prostate Cancer

  Men with low-risk prostate cancer — regardless of clinical characteristics or tumor biology — are being overtreated, often with radiation therapy, a population-based assessment has shown. The study was published online February 19 in JAMA Oncology. "The study was not so much about how prostate cancer is treated here in the United States, but what's driving the decision-making process," said Karim Chamie, MD, from the David...Read More

Is The End of Overtreatment Really In Sight?

  According to a new German study, efforts to avoid the acknowledged problems of overdiagnosis and overtreatment of insignificant prostate cancer is leading to different treatment patterns.[i] The authors note, “Many centers have reported dramatic changes, with increases in active surveillance (AS) of early cancers and local treatment of advanced disease.” In other words, more patients with low-risk, early stage PCa are being...Read More