Prostate cancer permanently stays at the focus of medical attention. All stages of the pathology are successfully treated abroad, in the specialized healthcare facilities. Thanks to the medical innovations, healthcare professionals achieve good results even in men with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer. On the Booking Health website you will find the information about the top prostate cancer hospitals, find a doctor and make the first step towards your travel abroad for treatment. You will also find here the information about the cost of medical services and make an appointment for your preferred dates.
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What surgical options for prostate cancer are used abroad?
Traditionally, prostate cancer surgery is the most effective and commonly used method for men with early-stage cancer who shift to the active treatment from such options as active surveillance or watchful waiting. In most patients, surgery is a curative therapeutic option.
In most countries, open surgical interventions through a large incision in the abdomen or perineum are still performed. According to the clinical data, such surgeries are often not that safe, associated with significant postoperative discomfort and undesirable consequences, and require a long recovery.
An open prostatectomy is rarely performed in the best prostate cancer hospitals abroad. Doctors are skilled enough to perform a minimally invasive laparoscopic or robot-assisted prostate removal. These surgical interventions are performed through short abdominal incisions. They are associated with less blood loss, a low risk of complications, a short postoperative recovery, and a rapid recovery of urinary control. With a nerve-sparing technique, doctors preserve potency which is important in sexually active men.
Is treatment without surgery possible?
Modern prostate cancer treatment centers offer non-surgical techniques that provide results comparable to surgery. According to the clinical situation, one of the following can be chosen:
- External beam radiation therapy (teletherapy)
- Brachytherapy – 2-3 minimally invasive procedures for the placement of radioactive seeds into the prostate
- HIFU therapy – the destruction of the tumor by means of ultrasound without any incisions or punctures
The non-surgical techniques recommended by the conventional prostate cancer protocols are external beam radiation therapy and brachytherapy. External beam radiation therapy is non-invasive and painless, but the therapeutic course takes longer. Brachytherapy is an invasive technique, but it is associated with a lower risk of post-radiation complications. In brachytherapy, radiation does not pass through healthy tissues, including the penile bulb and bladder, on its way to the malignant locus.
What should I do, if I have end-stage prostate cancer?
In most cases, metastatic prostate tumors cannot be cured. However, they can be successfully controlled for many months or even years.
First-line conventional treatment for advanced cancer is hormone therapy. Chemotherapy can also be used. The advantage of specialized prostate cancer centers is shifting to novel treatments when standard treatment options stop working. In eligible patients, targeted therapy and immune checkpoint inhibitors may be administered. Cancer vaccines with dendritic cells are also used to increase life expectancy.
The latest advancement in the treatment of end-stage prostate cancer is radiotargeted therapy. The method includes the injection of a radioactive substance that finds the tumor and its metastases, accumulates in cancer cells, and destroys them with radiation. Current options are treatment with Lutetium-177, Actinium-225, and Radium-223.
How to choose a foreign hospital for prostate cancer treatment?
You start your search from the Booking Health website. The world’s best prostate cancer specialists offer their experience and skills to the country residents and foreign patients. The urological tumor board will not only cure cancer but will do it with a minimal trauma, provide you with rapid recovery, and maintain normal urination and sexual function.
Visit Booking Health website to investigate prostate cancer treatment costs and compare prices at different clinics. Your medical travel overseas will be fully organized by the Booking Health team, who will assist you throughout your journey.
