HIFU for prostate cancer treatment
The most common cancer to be diagnosed in men is prostate cancer, and the second most common cancer is lung cancer. Half of the men over 60 have prostate cancer. The methods of treatment of this kind of oncology are being improved from year to year. However, early detection of a tumor helps to get rid of it quickly without any complications. That is why every man over 50 should undergo regular examinations.
High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) fights prostate cancer
High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU), or Ablatherm, is a procedure that destroys the area of the prostate gland affected with oncology by means of ultrasound, which helps to avoid surgical intervention.
This type of treatment is not suitable for all patients. In order for ultrasound treatment to be effective, the tumor should meet the following criteria:
- It should be of small size;
- It should have a certain localization;
- It should not touch the rectal wall. Overheating may occur, which may cause fecal incontinence in the future.
The HIFU-procedure is applied to patients who are over 50. It is so because the method of treating prostate cancer with ultrasound is quite young (it has been used for a little over ten years), which makes it impossible to foresee all the side effects in the long term.
In 2006, in France, 1,000 men underwent HIFU prostate cancer treatment for the first time. Since 2006, the doctors have been monitoring these patients in order to find side effects. It is likely that the minimum age for the HIFU-procedure will be decreased over time.
HIFU-procedure has been successfully used for the treatment of prostate cancer in most clinics in France for over 10 years.
HIFU treatment process
The patient lies on a surgical bed in the lateral position. A camera-equipped probe is inserted into the patient's rectum, which allows determining the exact location of the tumor. Then the prostate gland is processed with high-intensity focused ultrasound. The robot sonicates the entire surface of the prostate gland to avoid further spread of cancer cells.
The temperature may heat cancer cells to one hundred degrees. It is hyperthermia that kills oncology.
Unlike robotic surgery (da Vinci Surgical System), the HIFU procedure is fully automated. The aims of the medical staff are to locate the patient in the correct position, insert the probe and run the program. The robot performs the surgery, and the doctors and technicians monitor it.
The procedure takes about 2 hours. The patient can go home after 2-3 days of the observation in the clinic.
Benefits of HIFU procedure:
- The absence of radiation;
- Sexual potency is not affected;
- No surgical intervention;
- Fast recovery;
- The possibility of repeating the procedure in case of a relapse, which cannot be done after radiation therapy.
The cost of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) procedure
The estimated cost of treatment is 8,000 euros. Besides, before the procedure, one should take medical tests that are obligatory in France (800-1500 euros).
The patient should arrive in France 2 days before the procedure. After the procedure, he should spend 2-3 days in the clinic. A week after the HIFU treatment is performed, it is necessary to pass control tests. If the tests are OK, then the patient can go home. By this time, the man feels great and nothing hurts him.
Thus, you can get rid of prostate cancer in 10 days for 8000 euros in France. However, you have to remember that the treatment of prostate cancer with high-intensity focused ultrasound is possible only in its early stages, otherwise, you may need a radical prostatectomy. In France, the radical surgical prostatectomy by the da Vinci Robot has almost no side effect, unlike other methods of surgery (open, laparoscopic). The cost of a robotic prostatectomy in France is about 13,500 euros.
Undergo regular examinations and see a doctor when the first symptoms of the disease appear!
