The treatment is less advantage to men over 70 years younger than others. This is because the elderly are more likely to die from other causes than cancer, given the slowness of natural evolution. Moreover, these treatments can cause impotence and incontinence with what the lifestyle of those affected may seriously deteriorate.

Some older patients with prostate cancer decide to wait and monitor the course of the disease before undergoing any treatment. In many cases, the tumor spontaneously remains stable over long periods of time. If monitoring is correct and acted quickly in case of progression, this attitude of "wait and see" does not worsen the prognosis. Treatments that are commonly used are: Radical prostatectomy: with this operation removes the entire

It can be done under general anesthesia or epidural anesthesia.

There are two ways to perform this intervention, a radical retropubic prostatectomy and other radical perineal prostatectomy. In the first surgical incision is made in the lower abdomen. In the latter, the incision is made between the scrotum and anus. With the latter, you can not remove lymph nodes.

The prostate gland is surrounded by nerves that should be reviewed during the procedure to verify that they are not affected. If they are, will have to remove them, otherwise, be retained thereby increasing the chances of failing impotence after the operation.

The time for action is one to four hours. The patient will be hospitalized for four or five days and will be out three to five weeks without work.

In general, a urinary catheter will be for 10 or 12 days after surgery, will retire after this period the probe.

Transurethral resection of the prostate is a partial removal of the prostate, the part that is found around the urethra.

This type of operation is performed on benign prostatic hyperplasia and in prostate cancer patients who can not undergo total resection. It is used to relieve symptoms in these patients but not to cure them.

The procedure is performed by an instrument that is inserted through the urethra. This has inserted a small metal that when heated short portion of malignant tissue. It employs general or spinal anesthesia. The operation lasts about an hour.

Postoperatively, the urine is conveyed through a catheter from the bladder to the outside. Probe will be maintained for two or three days and then will retire.

The patient can be incorporated into their normal habits of life after a week or two.

Cryosurgery: is to freeze the cancer cells to maintain localized cancer. Is performed by placing a catheter through an incision in the skin between the anus and scrotum.

To locate the place where it should be inserted, using a transrectal ultrasound.

At the same time another spacecraft enters the urethra, through which warm saline passes to the urethra from freezing.

This technique should be performed with epidural anesthesia.

The intervention will put a catheter in the bladder through an incision in the skin for urine to exit without problems, since, after surgery, the prostate becomes inflamed. The probe will remain for one to two weeks, after which they retire and the man can urinate normally.

This technique is often used in patients who, by their physical conditions, can not withstand surgery or radiotherapy.

Radiation therapy: Radiation therapy is the use of high-energy rays such as X rays, to destroy or decrease the number of cancer cells. It is a local treatment.

It develops over a few days (the oncologist and the radiologist felt it appropriate), and the patient goes to an outpatient clinic or room where radiation therapy is performed, does not have to be entered for this.

As such, the treatment lasts a few minutes each day. It is not painful but it is something like an X-ray radiation only is greater and is concentrated in the affected area.

Side effects of this treatment include swelling, redness and dryness, as after a sunburn, which usually disappear after six or 12 months.

Brachytherapy: is a type of internal radiation therapy. Some small particles are used, the size of a grain of rice, which are inserted into the prostate. These particles are radioactive and emit radiation for weeks or months. Painless, its size is very small, their presence causes little discomfort. Maybe for a week after placement, the person present pain in the perineal area and a color of red-brown urine.

Today, radiation therapy, either external or braquiterápica has become an alternative to surgery. Not applicable to all cases, but is able to cure many patients without surgery and less likely to suffer permanent sequelae, as impotence or incontinence. If a relapse occurs after irradiation, can be cured by surgery.

Hormone therapy: is to reduce the levels of androgens, male hormones because they cause a growth of cancer cells. By reducing the levels of these hormones can reduce or make it grow more slowly but does not cure cancer.

This treatment is used with patients who have prostate cancer spread to other parts of the body. Another application of hormones is determined adjuvant, which are applied after curative surgery in an attempt to reduce the likelihood of relapse.

Hormone therapy can be done by removing the testicles or by administering drugs. The first technique is usually very aggressive and tends to prefer the latter.

Analogs of luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LHRH) are drugs that lower the amount of testosterone produced in the testes. Is injected monthly or every three months in consultation with a doctor or an oncology center. The drugs used are leuprolide and Zoladex.

After these two treatments can be used androgen blockers. They are also used as a combined treatment with the above, being more effective than each separately. The combination of LHRH analogs with antiandrogens is the most common hormonal treatment for prostate cancer treatment. Is sometimes called by the acronym BAC, corresponding to complete androgen blockade.

Anti-androgens are administered in pill form, once or three times a day.

Chemotherapy is used when prostate cancer has spread outside the prostate gland and hormone therapy when it has failed. With it not sought to destroy all cancer cells but does reduce symptoms and slow the progression of cancer. Not recommended for early stage prostate cancer. Until recently there were no truly effective chemotherapy to treat prostate cancer resistant to the hormones. Today there is a drug called docetaxel. It is a product that is given as an intravenous drip, applied every three weeks without income.

Side effects of these treatments

The most important side effects are incontinence or inability to control urination. The treatments for prostate cancer can damage muscles and nerves of the bladder and urethra. This can cause leakage of urine when coughing, laughing, or when exercising.

Urinary retention is the opposite effect of incontinence appears to accumulate a large amount of urine in the bladder. This is because the enlarged prostate presses on the urethra through preventing urine output. It can also occur as a result of the formation of scar tissue after surgery, the tissue blocks the flow of urine.

Impotence or inability to obtain an erection, may be another side effect. This occurs because the nerves responsible for erections, have been damaged or removed by radical prostatectomy.

Radiation therapy and cryosurgery can also damage nerves, but the incidence of impotence is much lower than with surgery.

Radiation therapy can cause transient diarrhea with or without blood and inflammation of the bowel (colitis).

Chemotherapy applied to prostate cancer causes hair loss in almost all cases. This loss is reversible and the hair is recovered upon discontinuation of treatment. Fatigue and loss of appetite are common. However, nausea and vomiting occur rarely and usually last a few days. During the period of chemotherapy is that blood tests often as they may reduce white blood cells, which facilitates infection.