Proton therapy yields long-term patient survival and excellent quality of life for prostate cancer patients, according to a study from the University of Florida Proton Therapy Institute.
A team led by Medical Director Dr. Nancy Mendenhall reported that 99% of men with early- and intermediate-risk prostate cancer were cancer-free five years after having proton therapy. Results were published in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology, Biology, Physics (March 2014, Vol. 88:3, pp. 596-602).
In addition, more than three-quarters of those with high-risk prostate cancer were free of disease at five years, according to the researchers.
The researchers tracked 211 patients, who were given proton therapy over an eight-week period.
| Outcomes following proton therapy | |||
| Low-risk patients | Intermediate-risk patients | High-risk patients | |
| Cancer-free survival rate at 5 years | 99% | 99% | 76% |
| Overall survival rate at 5 years | 93% | 88% | 90% |
Only 1.4% of patients had serious gastrointestinal complications, while 5.3% had serious urologic complications. Patients also reported good outcomes with respect to both urologic and bowel function, according to the group.
