Cancer-27

Cryosurgery is another method of treating prostate cancer in which the prostate gland is exposed to freezing temperatures.

It is less invasive than radical prostatectomy, and general anesthesia is less commonly used. Under ultrasound guidance, a method invented by Dr. Gary Onik,metal rods are inserted through the skin of the perineum into the prostate. Highly purified Argon gas is used to cool the rods, freezing the surrounding tissue at −196 °C (−320 °F). As the water within the prostate cells freeze, the cells die. The urethra is protected from freezing by a catheter filled with warm liquid. Cryosurgery generally causes fewer problems with urinary control than other treatments, but impotence occurs up to ninety percent of the time. When used as the initial treatment for prostate cancer and in the hands of an experienced cryosurgeon, cryosurgery has a 10 year biochemical disease free rate superior to all other treatments including radical prostatectomy and any form of radiation Cryosurgery has also been demonstrated to be superior to radical prostatectomy for recurrent cancer following radiation therapy.

All text is available under the GNU free documentation lisence
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_GNU_Free_Documentation_License
 

Links

Index page

Previous:  Prostate cancer - Radiation therapy 3

Next:  Prostate cancer - Treatment - Hormonal Therapy 1

Find Healthcare Jobs here