Prostate Cancer Specialist

What is prostate cancer?

The prostate is a small walnut-shaped gland. It produces seminal fluid that mixes with a man's sperm when he ejaculates. Prostate cancer develops when cells in the prostate mutate and overgrow, forming a tumor.

In most cases, prostate cancer is slow-growing, often staying within the prostate for years. There are less common types of prostate cancer that develop more rapidly and readily spread into other parts of your body.

What are the symptoms of prostate cancer?

In the first stages of the tumor's development, prostate cancer might not cause any symptoms. As the tumor grows larger, you might start experiencing problems such as:

• Trouble urinating
• Low urine flow rate
• Blood in your semen
• Pelvic discomfort
• Bone pain
• Erectile dysfunction

Prostate cancer is more likely to affect you as you get older. Having a family history of the disease also increases your risk, as does being obese. Black men have a higher risk of developing prostate cancer, but the reason is still unclear.

How is prostate cancer treated?

If you have a slow-growing form of prostate cancer, you might not need treatment but will be under active surveillance. That means attending checkups and having tests done at regular intervals to monitor the tumor.

One approach to treating prostate cancer is to undergo radical prostatectomy surgery. Although this can be a successful approach to treating cancer, prostatectomy does carry the risk of causing urinary incontinence and erectile dysfunction. 

At Greater Houston Radiation Oncology, the team specializes in using radiation therapy to treat prostate cancer.

How does radiation therapy treat prostate cancer?

The Greater Houston Radiation Oncology team delivers radiation therapy for prostate cancer in two ways. External beam radiation comes from outside your body, while brachytherapy involves putting small grains of radioactive material in your prostate tissue.

The team uses the most advanced technologies and up-to-date techniques to deliver radiation therapy for prostate cancer. These may include image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT) and RapidArc™ Volumetric Arc Therapy, which significantly increase precision and reduce side effects.

Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) is another technique that is ideally suited to treating prostate cancer.  This technique, also known as stereotactic ablative radiotherapy (SABR), uses advanced image-guided techniques to deliver large doses of radiation to a precise area, such as the prostate. Because there are large doses of radiation in each dose, the entire course of treatment is given in just a few days.

SpaceOAR™ Hydrogel

Your provider at Greater Houston Radiation Oncology also uses SpaceOAR™ Hydrogel when treating prostate cancer. SpaceOAR creates a space between your prostate and your rectum. This space prevents high dose radiation from reaching your rectum, reducing the risk of adverse effects such as sexual dysfunction and urinary and bowel problems.

What are other uses for radiation therapy?

Radiation therapy has several uses in addition to its function in treating primary prostate cancer. For instance, if your prostate cancer metastasizes to your bones, you might benefit from treatment with QUADRAMET®, an injectable radiopharmaceutical that helps control bone cancer pain.

If you've previously had prostate cancer and tests indicate a recurrence, your provider can carry out a positron emission tomography (PET) or computed tomography (CT) scan using Axumin®. This radioactive drug or tracer highlights cancer cells in your prostate at an early stage.

To find out more about prostate cancer treatments, call Greater Houston Radiation Oncology or book an appointment online today.