Feb 27, 2006

Surgeon's Experience Affects Prostate Cancer Outcome

Before you undergo prostate cancer surgery, it's important to know how many prostate cancer surgeries that surgeon has performed in the past. This is important because the outcome of the surgery and the chance of recurrence may very well depend upon the skills of the surgeon. A recent study showed that chance of prostate cancer recurrence after surgery to remove the prostate is not only influenced by features of the tumor but also by the skill or level of experience of the surgeon.

This study showed that if performed by a surgeon who has performed at least 250 prostate cancer surgeries in the past are more likely to get rid of the cancer permanently. This means that if an experienced urology surgeon performs your surgery you're more likely to be cured.

Don't be hesitant to ask the surgeon about their level of his experience. After he is performing surgery on your body.

These findings were presented at the 2006 Prostate Cancer Symposium in San Francisco. This study is based on 7535 men who had their prostates removed by a procedure called radical prostatectomy. After an average follow-up of 50 months, 1,281 patients (17 percent) experienced a recurrence of prostate cancer as indicated by a rising PSA level.

"The learning curve looks like it continues to rise up to 250 procedures," Scardino said. "But the emphasis," he cautioned, "should not be on the exact number but on the principle that the more the surgeon has done the better."

Mark      

Do You Read All Of Our Cancer Blogs?

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Cancer blog: I manage the cancer blog with lots of help and support form other bloggers. Through this cancer blog my friends and I try to bring stories of hope for patients with cancer. The cancer blog often republishes important blog posts from other cancer related blogs at Medicineworld.org. If you are searching for a blog that covers wide variety of cancer topics, this may be the one for you.

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Janet      

Prostate cancer
The prostate is located just below the bladder and in front of the rectum in male. The tube that carries urine runs through the prostate. The prostate contains cells that make some of the seminal fluid. This fluid protects and nourishes the sperm. Prostate cancer usually starts in the gland cells of the prostate. This kind of cancer is known as adenocarcinoma. Prostate cancer is usually a slow disease, but sometimes it can grow fast and spread quickly to other organs.