Higher Doses of Radiation Urged for Higher-Risk Prostate Cancer: Presented at NCCN

By Ed Susman

HOLLYWOOD, Fla -- March 7, 2008 -- Patients undergoing radiation therapy for treatment of intermediate- to high-risk prostate cancer should receive higher doses of radiation than those used for low-risk prostate cancer, and should be treated with conformal radiation or intensity-modulated radiation therapy.

Doctors suggested that radiation doses of 70 to 79 Gy are sufficient to treat individuals with low-risk prostate cancer, and radiation therapy to the lymph nodes can be avoided in these patients. Androgen deprivation therapy is also unnecessary for these men, said Michael R. Kuettel, MD, PhD, Professor and Chairman, Radiation Medicine and Molecular and Cellular Biophysics, Roswell Park Cancer Institute and State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York.

complete article at: Doctors Guide