I am newly diagnosed with prostate cancer and, like everyone else, I’m eagerly looking for the cure. I’ve read about surgery, radiation, ProstRcision, and CyberKnife, and so far I would lean toward Proton Therapy. But I’ve always been told that if something seems too good to be true, it probably is. I’ve read on the MD Anderson website that they monitor you for side effects during and following the therapy, but I find nothing that tells what those side effects might be. I live in southwest Arkansas, so MD Anderson would be the closest place offering Proton Therapy. But I still have lots of questions: How long have they been doing Proton Therapy? How many patients have they treated? What are their results so far…are they comparable to Loma Linda’s? I would really appreciate any input I can get.

I am 54 years old. I found out at my annual check-up on 12-18-08 that my PSA had elevated from 2.2 to 4.0 over the past year. 12 biopsies were taken on 1-14-09.  9 of the 12 were benign (3 of those with atrophy). The other 3 biopsies read like this: Right Lateral Base: Adenocarcinoma, predicted Gleason score 6 (3+3), involving 10% of the tissue. Right Base: High Grade Prostatic Intraepithelial Neoplasia. Right Apex: Atypical small acinar proliferation, highly suspicious for prostatic adenocarcinoma.

My urologist suggests surgery or radiation. I told him I wanted to do a little more research, but obviously I don't want to wait too long.

Thanks for any advice you can give.

I had pretty much decided in favor of Proton Therapy. I just can't go the surgery route with all its potential side effects. Not too crazy about traditional radiation therapy either...just about as many side effects. But I have found out that my insurer, Arkansas Blue Cross Blue Shield, doesn't cover proton therapy. So I guess I'm back to square one. Has anyone else had similar problems from your insurance company, and how did you proceed? Also, does anyone know the cost of proton therapy, in case I decide to proceed and fight the insurance company later?

Thanks.

Remove the tumor and if you have clear margins and not lymph your good to go. Mine were not that way but I am still cooking and have a very slow grower. Will ablate somewhere in the future.