The use of radiation seeds for prostate cancer is no longer news, but I remember when I first heard of radiation seeds for prostate cancer. There were some Swedish experts, back in December 2008, who experimented with this method of treatment and found that if you combine the use of radiation seeds, called radiotherapy, with medication, you greatly improve the life expectancy of the patient and the odds start shifting in favor of the patient. I will now try to quote from memory the first article I read about this topic, because I remember it pretty clearly. So, without further ado, here goes.



Combining radiation therapy with standard drug therapy halved the rate of deaths from advanced forms of prostate cancer and should become the new worldwide accepted standard therapy, according to Swedish experts. The study was published in the journal Lancet Oncology and was conducted on a sample of 800 patients suffering from prostate cancer. The study revealed that 24% of patients who received only standard treatment died, on average, after 10 years, compared with 12% of patients who have benefited from radiotherapy.

Adding radiation therapy to standard treatment does not cause too many side effects, according to the same Swedish experts. "The quality of life and adverse effects are at an acceptable level. For this reason, we suggest that endocrine therapy combined with radiation become the new standard treatment for these patients," said Anders Widmark of Umea University (Sweden).

Prostate cancer is the second in the top forms of cancer that cause most deaths in men, being the reason for over 221,000 fatalities in the world every year. Approximately 679,000 new cases are discovered annually. Prostate cancer is easily treated by surgery or radiotherapy, if discovered in early stages. For cases where prostate cancer has spread in the body, prescribing certain medications that interfere with hormones that feed cancer cells is a good method to fight this disease.

In the United States, using the drug with radiation therapy has become a standard, said Howard Sandler, director of the radiology-oncology ward of Cedars Sinai hospital in Los Angeles, and a spokesman for the American Society of Clinical Oncology. He said that in Europe clinics do not offer radiation therapy as a standard treatment. "A 50% reduction in the number of deaths from prostate cancer is definitely a clear medical benefit," said Sandler.

That’s it, since then, I have kept hearing about radiation therapy, the use of radiation seeds for prostate cancer or the use of external radiation, for a broader base of action of the radiation. Clearly there are many benefits in the new forms of treatment discovered, but the best method of fighting cancer is to prevent it, to prevent the known causes and to live a healthy life. For this, you need to get informed on what the causes for cancer might be and act accordingly. First of all, reduce or quit smoking, and also reduce or quit alcohol. These two are some of your greatest enemies, and by simply dropping these nasty habits you will greatly improve your health and your overall chances of having a long, beautiful and healthy life.