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Prostate cancer surveillance found safe at 17 years
“Over the past few decades, the rate of active surveillance has been around 10%. Now in recent years, the rate of active surveillance is 55% across the U.S. So times are changing," says Sigrid Carlsson, MD, PhD, MPH, in this interview.
Active surveillance for select men with localized prostate cancer is a safe management strategy at a follow-up of 17 years, researchers from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center reported.
The risk of metastasis was 1% at 10 years and 5% at 15 years, said first author Sigrid Carlsson, MD, PhD, MPH, at the Society of Urologic Oncology annual meeting in Phoenix. The large-scale study included 2,600 patients with Gleason 6 prostate cancer and about 200 with Gleason 3+4 disease.
In a video interview with Urology Times, Dr. Carlsson discusses additional results of the study, ideal candidates for an active surveillance protocol, patient follow-up, and the growing acceptance of active surveillance as an alternative to definitive treatment.
“Over the past few decades, the rate of active surveillance has been around 10%,” she said. “Now in recent years, the rate of active surveillance is 55% across the U.S. So times are changing.”
