Your GP will usually arrange the first tests to assess your symptoms. If these tests do not rule out cancer, you will usually be referred to a specialist, who may arrange further tests. If you are diagnosed with prostate cancer, the cancer specialist leading your care may be a urologist or radiation oncologist. In some cases, the main specialist may be a medical oncologist. Your specialists may discuss treatment options with other health professionals at what is known as a multidisciplinary team MDT meeting.
During and after treatment, you will see a range of health professionals who specialise in different aspects of your care. Don't hesitate to ask him or her questions about your treatment options. Download this topic [PDF].
Cancer A-Z Prostate Cancer. Depending on each case, treatment options for men with prostate cancer might include:. The main types of doctors who treat prostate cancer include: Urologist: A surgeons who treat diseases of the urinary system and male reproductive system including the prostate Radiation oncologist: A doctor who treats cancer with radiation therapy Medical oncologist: A doctor who treats cancer with medicines such as chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immunotherapy Many other specialists may be involved in your care as well, including nurse practitioners, nurses, nutritionists, social workers, rehabilitation specialists, and other health professionals.
Health Professionals Associated with Cancer Care. Clinical Trials. Complementary and Integrative Medicine. If Cancer Treatments Stop Working. More In Prostate Cancer. Image of. There is also no board certification in cryosurgery. There is, however, an International Society of Cryosurgery. A developing trend is a team approach to the evaluation and treatment of prostate cancer patients.
What this means is that a patient can be seen by one or more of a group of physicians that may include a primary care physician, a urologist, a radiation oncologist, a medical oncologist, and sometimes even a psychiatrist.
You are more likely to find such a team approach at specialized prostate cancer clinics associated with some major hospitals and universities. In the first place, you and your primary care physician need to decide together the type of specialist you need to see initially. For the vast majority of patients, this will be a urologist. Depending on where you live and the type of health care that is available to you, your primary care physician may be able to offer you a referral to one or more urologists.
Secondly, you and your primary care physician need to decide who is the best specialist for you from the available options. When you start to look for a specialist, there are a small number of things it is wise to keep in mind:. In the original edition of his book Prostate and Cancer now in its third edition , Sheldon Marks, MD, a urologist, wrote:.
The doctor should be judged on his or her own merits. What you really want is a caring and compassionate [physician] , technically excellent, with a good track record, outstanding judgment, a history of minimal complications [if he or she is going to be your surgeon] and happy patients and referring doctors.
This is still true today, whether your physician is a urologist, a radiation oncologist, a medical oncologist, a brachytherapist, or any other specialist you choose to consult.
For even more specific advice about what certain specialists would do themselves if they were in your shoes , you can try reading one or more of the following:. News and information provided on this site should not be used for diagnosing or treating any health problem or disease.
It is not engaged in rendering medical advice or professional services and is not a substitute for professional care. For prostate cancer that spreads to other areas of the body, such as the bones, radiation therapy can help slow the cancer's growth and relieve symptoms, such as pain. These treatments may be considered for treating very small prostate cancers when surgery isn't possible. They may also be used to treat advanced prostate cancers if other treatments, such as radiation therapy, haven't helped.
Researchers are studying whether cryotherapy or HIFU to treat one part of the prostate might be an option for cancer that's confined to the prostate. Referred to as "focal therapy," this strategy identifies the area of the prostate that contains the most aggressive cancer cells and treats that area only. Studies have found that focal therapy reduces the risk of side effects. But it's not clear whether it offers the same survival benefits as treatment to the entire prostate.
Hormone therapy is treatment to stop your body from producing the male hormone testosterone. Prostate cancer cells rely on testosterone to help them grow. Cutting off the supply of testosterone may cause cancer cells to die or to grow more slowly.
Hormone therapy is often used to treat advanced prostate cancer to shrink the cancer and slow its growth. Hormone therapy is sometimes used before radiation therapy to treat cancer that hasn't spread beyond the prostate. It helps shrink the cancer and increases the effectiveness of radiation therapy. Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill rapidly growing cells, including cancer cells.
Chemotherapy can be administered through a vein in your arm, in pill form or both. Chemotherapy may be a treatment option for treating prostate cancer that has spread to other areas of the body. Chemotherapy may also be an option for cancers that don't respond to hormone therapy. Immunotherapy uses your immune system to fight cancer. Your body's disease-fighting immune system may not attack your cancer because the cancer cells produce proteins that help them hide from the immune system cells.
Immunotherapy works by interfering with that process. Targeted drug treatments focus on specific abnormalities present within cancer cells. By blocking these abnormalities, targeted drug treatments can cause cancer cells to die. Targeted therapy drugs may be recommended to treat advanced or recurrent prostate cancer if hormone therapy isn't working.
Some targeted therapies only work in people whose cancer cells have certain genetic mutations. Your cancer cells may be tested in a laboratory to see if these drugs might help you.
Explore Mayo Clinic studies testing new treatments, interventions and tests as a means to prevent, detect, treat or manage this condition. No complementary or alternative treatments will cure prostate cancer. However, complementary and alternative prostate cancer treatments may help you cope with the side effects of cancer and its treatment. Nearly everyone diagnosed with cancer experiences some distress at some point.
If you're distressed, you may feel sad, angry or anxious. You may experience difficulty sleeping or find yourself constantly thinking about your cancer. Discuss your feelings and concerns with your doctor. In some cases, treatment for distress may require medications. When you receive a diagnosis of prostate cancer, you may experience a range of feelings — including disbelief, fear, anger, anxiety and depression.
With time, each person finds his own way of coping with a prostate cancer diagnosis. If your doctor suspects you may have a problem with your prostate, you may be referred to a urinary tract specialist urologist. If you're diagnosed with prostate cancer, you may be referred to a cancer specialist oncologist or a specialist who uses radiation therapy to treat cancer radiation oncologist.
Because appointments can be brief, and because there's often a lot of information to discuss, it's a good idea to be prepared. Here's some information to help you get ready and what to expect from your doctor. Your time with your doctor is limited, so preparing a list of questions can help you make the most of your time together.
List your questions from most important to least important in case time runs out.
0コメント