The High Risk Patient

Patients can be divided into low medium and high risk for cancer recurrence based on the following clinical parameters.

1.  Gleason score 7 or greater
2.  PSA 10 or greater
3.  Stage T2b or greater

Patients who have one of these clinical parameters have been shown statistically to have a medium risk of cancer recurrence and patients with two or more, a high risk of cancer recurrence.

Based on 5 and 7 year data published in the urologic literature, cryoablation has been shown to be a superior treatment in these increased risk groups. Reasons accounting for this may be that cryoablation can be repeated if local recurrence does occur and that cryoablation has the ability to the freeze outside the prostate to encompass cancer that has already locally escaped the gland. Literature in the past also indicated that patients who have had cryosurgery might also have an increased immunological response to their tumor after it is frozen, although this remains to be further studied.

Our latest information indicates that even patients with medium to high risk prostate cancer can still have a focal cryosurgery or "Male Lumpectomy". This includes patients who have cancer on both sides of the gland as well. In our recent study, in which the Male Lumpectomy showed 95% biochemically disease free results, over half the patients were in the medium to high risk category.