Targeted prostate cancer treatment cuts risk of side effects, study suggests
A 10-year NHS study indicates that focal therapy for prostate cancer is as effective as traditional surgery or radiotherapy but carries significantly fewer side effects. Researchers are now advocating for wider availability of this less invasive treatment.
Why it matters
This study provides long-term evidence that could shift standard medical practice, potentially improving quality of life for thousands of prostate cancer patients.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Only about 1,000 men a year in the UK receive focal therapy treatment currently
Medical editor Published 8 minutes ago A less invasive therapy for prostate cancer is just as effective as surgery or radiotherapy but with a lower risk of side effects, a major study suggests.
The treatment, named focal therapy, uses high-intensity ultrasound or freezing cryotherapy to destroy cancerous tissue.
A 10-year NHS study led by Imperial College London followed nearly 3,500 men who received the therapy, providing long-term data that medical regulators had previously said was missing.
Researchers say the results are "excellent" and they are likely to add to pressure for focal therapy to be made more widely available.
Nearly all the men had intermediate or high-risk prostate cancer - but 10 years after treatment only two had died from the disease.
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