There has been some commotion recently over the so-called "male lumpectomy". The term "lumpectomy" is usually associated with a less extensive surgery for breast cancer where only the lump is removed and the rest of the breast is spared.
Recently, a study was written claiming that a "male lumpectomy" was now a viable possibility for prostate cancer treatment. The authors of this study used cryotherapy (intense freezing of the prostate to kill cancer cells) to freeze only the part of the prostate where cancer was detected without removing or killing the rest of the prostate. Furthermore, the authors claimed that this procedure resulted in equally good cure rates as surgery or radiation (the more standard approaches to prostate cancer treatment) with far less complications overall (such as erectile dysfunction or incontinence).
Some major media outlets have picked up on this story (likely because of the catchy name - "male lumpectomy"), but the procedure is not really new. Cryotherapy has been around for years and has always been a bit of a controversial topic. Many prostate cancer experts don't believe it is as effective of a treatment option, but there are those who swear by it as well. The American Cancer Society's stance is that not enough research has been done on cryotherapy to know how it truly compares to more standard treatment options.
Photo by Digital Vision - Getty Images
If the results of Onik’s study can be believed, this procedure would be great for folks with early detected prostate cancer. The trick is to discover doctors locally who can or will perform the procedure.