Treatment options - IRE / Nanoknife Experiences

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VBDAD
VBDAD Member Posts: 1 Member
in Prostate Cancer #1

Hello All,

I was recently diagnosed with Prostate cancer. I'm 44 years old and otherwise in great shape. Gleason 3 + 4 in 8 of 32 cores. It's all located on one side of the gland.

My urologist and Oncologist both recommend removal. Pretty standard of care and well documented. I'm not opposed to this treatment as a last resort but would prefer to not have the accompanied side effects, if possible.

I'm exploring all my options and I'm most likely going to do IRE (NanoKnife) with Dr. Gary Onik as my first option. I've read a ton on it and have had a few in depth conversations with Dr. Onik about the procedure.

Has anyone had this procedure on prostate cancer and care to comment on it? I'm looking for whatever first hand experience I can get. Side effects, did it work for you, did your PSA drop back to normal levels, etc.

Thanks!

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  • VascodaGama
    VascodaGama Member Posts: 3,657 Member
    #2
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    You may be the first guy reporting in this board about an electronic treatment for prostate cancer.

    If worried about the side-effects, in your shoes I would choose among the more common and well known traditional treatments. Probably you would fare better with HDR brachy.

    Welcome to the board.

    VG

  • Clevelandguy
    Clevelandguy Member Posts: 1,019 Member
    #3
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    Hi,

    The technology sounds very promising. From what info I have read it sounds like it has very few side effects with little damage to surrounding tissue. With that being said if it was me I would want to know the long term success rate like you asked about. Looks like it’s only been around a few years, could be hard to find doctors and facilities with a lot of experience using this technique. Like I always say, great doctors + great facilities = the best outcomes. I would thoroughly research this treatment modality or pick a treatment course which has a longer history and calculated historic cure rates.

    Dave 3+4

  • Old Salt
    Old Salt Member Posts: 1,335 Member
    #4
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    The therapy is pretty new, and I doubt that you will find answers to your questions on THIS board.

    Like Vasco already stated, I would choose a therapy that has significant long-term data (ten years, or more). I would also consider the fact that prostate cancer is multifocal and even though the most obvious areas (in your case eight of them) will be treated, there are likely other cancerous spots that are currently not seen on scans. Thus, it appears likely that further treatment down the line may be necessary. Have you discussed this with Dr Onik? Would 'classical' radiation therapies be possible if that scenario develops?

    Here is a link to a fairly current review of IRE:

    Irreversible Electroporation for the Ablation of Prostate Cancer - PubMed (nih.gov)

    One of the conclusions is as follows:

    Recent data from larger cohorts with a longer follow-up of up to 12 months prove that focal IRE as primary treatment for localized PCa is indeed safe, has effective short-term oncological control in selected patients, and it has good functional outcomes by retaining urinary function and causing only mild erectile dysfunction.

    I am sorry that you have to face cancer at such a young age, and I hope that treatment will be successful.

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