Patients should get involved in choosing the best treatment for their prostate cancer.

April 3rd, 2006

Working in the medical field, time and time again I have seen patients come in for prostate cancer surgery or radiation treatment based solely on the reccomendations of their primary physician.  It has also been my experience that the primary physicians each have their recommedation of choice and will 9 times out of 10 always recommend the patient for the treatment option that they are comfortable with.  This is not always the best choice of treatment for every patient.

 

Recent studies which will be published in the May 1 issue of Cancer examined prostate cancer patient's decisions for treatment and concluded that they are recieving recommendations for popular treatment options which are biased.  This is partly due to the fact that their is a lack of consistent and comprehensive evidence on each treatment option. It was found that doctors often present the treatment options to the patients in a manner which can be confusing and does not reflect the patients preferences.   Due to these biased recommendations on treatment option and confusion in making the recommendation the patients often do not recieve the treatment option that suits their actual preferences and needs.

Studies have shown that as little as 1 in 4 patients actually base their choice for treatment option on the treatment's ability to eliminate the disease.  Another factor in the patients decision making process on treatment should include side effects.  Often patients are concerned with the side effects but they do not base their choice for treatment on this important factor.

 Physicians need to educate their patients and offer them choices. The pro's and con's of each treatment option should be discussed and weighed with the expected outcome.  These choices should also not be based on what the doctor is comfortable with or who they usually refer patients to.  Physicians need to education themselves and their patients on the wide selection of treatment options that are available.