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Prostate Radiation May Cause Problems Later

By Henry J. Fishman, M.D.
ConsumerAffairs.com

June 17, 2006

• Broccoli Reduces Prostate Cancer Risk, Study Finds • Celebrex-Lipitor Combo May Halt Prostate Cancer • Exercise May Speed Prostate Tumor Growth • Soy Compound May Halt Spread of Prostate Cancer • Obesity Linked to Higher Prostate Cancer Mortality • Red Wine May Fight Prostate Cancer • Enlarged Prostate Doesn't Mean Cancer • Hopkins Researchers Claim Better Blood Test for Prostate Cancer • Severe Form of Enlarged Prostate Disease Discovered • Tomato-Broccoli Combo Can Help Shrink Prostate Cancers • Weight Gain Increases Risk of Dying from Prostate Cancer • Smoking Linked to Complications in Prostate Cancer Treatment • Newer Approach Urged in Screening for Aggressive Prostate Cancer • Aspirin May Prevent or Delay Enlarged Prostate • Hopkins Researchers Find Better Blood Test for Prostate Cancer • Prostate Radiation May Cause Problems Later • New Test Detects Prostate Cancer Spread Earlier • Castration May Be Advised in Advanced Prostate Cancer • Radiation Therapy May Be Best for Younger Prostate Cancer Patients • Study Recommends More Prostate Biopsies • Delayed Surgery May Be OK for Some Prostate Cancer Patients • Study: PSA Test Doesn't Improve Prostate Cancer Survival Rate • Prostate Cancer Genes Identified • Annual Prostate Cancer Screening Test Appears to Save Lives • FDA Panel Rejects Prostate Cancer Pill • PSA Test Still Useful, Hopkins Study Finds • No "Normal" PSA Level: Study • New Prostate Cancer Test Shows Promise • Lifestyle and Diet May Stop or Reverse Prostate Cancer Progression

Treating prostate cancer with radiation may slightly increase a man's risk of developing rectal cancer.

Researchers studied 86,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer who did not have rectal cancer. About 35 percent received radiation treatments -- usually with small beads placed in the prostate. Sixty-five percent of this group were treated sufficiently.

However, a decade later a small number of them -- 267 -- had developed rectal cancer. The rectum is near the prostate.

While this rate is low, people treated with radiation had a 70 percent greater chance of developing rectal cancer than the control group. Radiation did not cause cancer in other parts of the abdomen.

So, the millions of men who have prostate cancer each year should go over the pluses and minuses of surgery versus radiation with their doctors. While the risk of rectal cancer from radiation is extremely low and may not be a problem for most men, it is there and should be taken into consideration.

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