- CryotherapyAs medical oncologists rather than surgeons, we do not have a preset agenda toward a specific treatment. All treatments, including active surveillance, hormone therapy, immunotherapy, surgery, radiation, brachytherapy, cryotherapy, focal therapy, proton therapy, nutritional and alternative therapies, HIFU and chemotherapy are given equal consideration depending on the unique needs of each individual patient.
- Primary CareProstate cancer is confusing because of the variety of different forms (see home page). The fact that some types of prostate cancer remain dormant for a lifetime is unique compared to other cancers. Unfortunately, society in general, including many primary care physicians, is uninformed about this latent type of prostate cancer. Patients are unaware that latent prostate cancer can be safely observed without immediate treatment. So when a biopsy discloses prostate cancer, an emotional chain reaction occurs. The word CANCER triggers powerful feelings and a rush to aggressive treatment. The strength of the emotional reaction has such a blinding effect that many people fail to realize that treatment was unnecessary until after the damage. In men with the latent form of prostate cancer, common treatments like surgery, radiation and hormonal therapy destroy quality-of-life without prolonging it.
- Urinary IncontinenceListen: https://soundcloud.com/prostate-oncology/proceeding-to-top-seed-1 “Urinary incontinence or leakage is quite rare after a seed implant, but it’s extremely common after surgery. This is another way that seed implants really shine when comparing …
- Pelvic Pain
- Internal MedicineDr. Lam received his undergraduate degree in biology, magna cum laude, at UCLA. He then went on to earn his medical degree at UCLA School of Medicine before completing his residency training in the specialty of internal medicine at UCLA Center of Health Sciences. He completed his oncology and hematology fellowship at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
- UrologyUROLOGY. The PCRI also provides financial support for research endeavors in the area of active surveillance, prostate imaging, and the development of new tumor markers. Future directions for PCRI research are aimed at enhancing the anticancer function of the immune system, developing treatments to prevent bone metastases, and evaluating the impact of nutritional supplements.
- Prostate CancerThe power of a single word—CANCER—can’t be underestimated. Its deadliness is famous. Often patients have previous experiences with cancer striking a friend or family member. One of the biggest challenges prostate cancer specialists face is undoing what patients think they already “know” about cancer. Patients assume it’s a death sentence and rush into the first treatment offered while failing to realize that a single additional modifying word—PROSTATE—changes everything. Generally speaking, the worst type of prostate cancer is better than the best type of any other cancer. For example, the average survival of relapsed pancreas cancer is four months. The average for relapsed prostate cancer is thirteen years.
- Cancer CareOne big topic of study in prostate cancer is immunotherapy. Clinical trials researching Keytruda and Amgen’s BiTE platform are promising for the future of prostate cancer care. Explore clinicaltrials.gov for a list of prostate cancer clinical trials, or visit prostateoncology.com/services/clinical-trials for a list of current and past clinical trials conducted at Prostate Oncology Specialists.
- UltrasoundExactVu is a gray scale ultrasound only, this means that it does not look at tumor vascularity. The benefit of color Doppler is that it uses both grey scale and Doppler (which examines tumor vascularity). Also, the skill of the doctor who is administering and interpreting the ultrasound images needs to be high quality as well.
- MRI3T MP-MRI is an imaging scan that uses contrast to locate suspicious lesions in the prostate. It can show if the cancer is spreading beyond the prostate capsule, or has spread to the seminal vesicles. An MRI is only a valid substitute for a biopsy when performed at a validated expert facility.
- RadiologyDr. Scholz served as oncology director at the Memorial Campus of the Centinela Freeman Regional Medical Center from 1996-2001. His current hospital affiliations include St. John’s Health Center, Marina del Rey Hospital. His society memberships include the American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Society of Therapeutic Radiology, American Urologic Associate and European Associate of Urology. He continues as a primary investigator actively supervising a number of ongoing prostate cancer clinical trials and has authored or coauthored over 90 scholarly articles and abstracts in his area of expertise.
- ChemotherapyListen: https://soundcloud.com/prostate-oncology/pp-e008 Modern chemotherapy is much more tolerable and much more effective than what we previously had.” – Dr. Scholz For many people the word chemotherapy triggers a lot of …
- Radiation TherapyRadiation: Radiation therapy usually causes worse short-term prostatitis symptoms but better long-term symptoms. PSA is usually higher immediately following radiation due to inflammation of the prostate but it will lower with time as inflammation decreases. Another cause of inflammation from radiation can occur either directly following or up to several years after radiation therapy, this is a non-cancerous rise in PSA due to inflammation called a PSA bump. It is important to distinguish a PSA Bump from a rise in PSA due to cancer growth. The newly FDA approved PSMA PET scan will help determine the cause of a high PSA after radiation.
- LesionsColor Doppler ultrasounds can help doctors determine the size of the prostate and may indicate if there are any suspicious lesions in the gland that may be indicative of a prostate cancer.