SpaceOAR is a new rectal protection product for men with prostate cancer undergoing radiation therapy. SpaceOAR reduces the risk of rectal toxicity, also known as radiation enteropathy, a potential side effect of radiation that can be permanent after radiation..

Back in 1996, I watched my steadfast father’s quality-of-life crumble as he descended into the world of prostate cancer (PC). Treatments (castration, radiation, etc.) rendered a once proud man a shadow of his former self, which was the result of gruesome side effects. Consequently, when I was diagnosed in 2005 at the age of 55...

Active Surveillance is often the best treatment choice for men with low-risk disease, but new thinking proposes that men with a favorable type of intermediate risk disease may also be candidates for this noninvasive management protocol. Laurence Klotz, MD, the leading expert in active surveillance, addresses this new thinking in this article.

PCRI's free Helpline connects patients and caregivers with educational advocates and helps them understand their personal case. This article is a top ten frequently asked questions list that our Helpline receives. 

If you have been diagnosed with prostate cancer and are unable to work, you may be worried about making ends meet. Fortunately, the Social Security Administration (SSA) provides financial benefits for people who are unable to work due to an illness.

Metastatic, late stage, and terminal prostate cancers automatically meet the SSA’s medical eligibility requirements for disability benefits. Prostate cancer that is diagnosed early and response to treatment, however, may or may not qualify you for benefits.

Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre’s Laurence Klotz, MD, speaks with PCRI about management of low-risk prostate cancer with Active Surveillance. 

What is active surveillance, and how does it compare with other methods of treating prostate cancer?

The concept of conservative management for prostate cancer is not new. In fact, in Scandinavia and England in the 70s, basically no one was treated until they had metastatic disease. And the idea was that treatment....

Interpreting a Pathology Report By Jonathan Epstein, MD | Johns Hopkins University

Patients should personally review their pathology report; the expert description of the information obtained from the needle biopsy. In this article, Dr. Epstein answers 15 common questions about understanding a pathology report.

"If you are looking about information about Prostate cancer for yourself or someone you love, you are going to encounter the Gleason Score. OK so what is it? At it’s simplest the Gleason score is a measure of how aggressive or nonaggressive a prostate cancer tumor is. 

It seems we have a national passion for prostate biopsies. A million men are biopsied every year. Two hundred thousand of them will be diagnosed with prostate cancer and about half of these with Low-Risk disease, a condition that can be safely monitored without immediate treatment. Even so, more than half of these men with Low-Risk will undergo prompt, radical treatment.  Sadly, irrational fears rooted in the electrifying word “cancer” drive most men into taking immediate action.

Why Screen for Prostate Cancer?

Screening finds earlier stage cancers, allows for simpler treatments with fewer side effects, and saves lives. For example, in 1985, prior to PSA screening, the prostate cancer five-year survival rate was 69% compared to 99% in 2006. It’s unclear whether this dramatic survival increase is entirely due to PSA screening. Other factors, such as improved therapy have also contributed.