New cancer treatment with fewer side effects to be tested in Britain

An unprecedented test for prostate cancer Treatment with fewer side effects has started UK,

Supported by the government-funded National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR), the trial will investigate whether aquablation – a therapy using robotics, aye and real-time imaging – works as well or better than traditional surgery, known as radical prostatectomy.

Radical prostatectomy involves removing the entire prostate gland to cure men. prostate cancerThis treatment is suitable for men who cancer The prostate has not spread outside the gland or has not spread to the area just outside the gland.

However, the operation carries a risk of serious side effects such as infection, erectile dysfunction and urinary problems.

Researchers hope that aquablation will reduce these issues.

This therapy is currently used in some centers to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH).

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Aquablation involves a robot-assisted, high-pressure waterjet. Surgeons can also map the entire prostate in real time with ultrasound.

Using the technique, doctors find the cancerous tissue to remove while avoiding the surrounding nerves and muscles connected to erectile function and the bladder.

The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust is the first hospital in London Europe Recruiting one patient into the trial, which is being run in seven countries.

In total, 280 patients will be recruited globally, all suffering from early-stage, localized prostate cancer who have already decided to undergo surgery.

Philip Charlesworth, consultant urological surgeon at the Royal Marsden, said: “For men with prostate cancer that is confined to the prostate, therapeutic options are excellent, however, we are increasingly focused on the side effects of cancer treatment and how we can adapt new technology to maintain a man’s quality of life after surgery.

“This trial is measuring ablation therapy, which uses a robotic approach to surgically remove cancer, and preserve a man’s ability to remain continent and maintain sexual activity.

“The potential of this trial is very exciting. Based on the results of the study, it has the opportunity to add an alternative surgical treatment option for patients with localized prostate cancer around the world.

“The ultimate aim, and my passion, is to improve prostate cancer treatments so that they cause less harm and are less invasive for the patient.

“I think this is an incredibly exciting possibility for the future of prostate cancer care.”

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Other possible treatments for localized prostate cancer include active surveillance or monitoring of the cancer and radiation.

The new trial is sponsored by the American company, Prosept Biorobotics.

To date, more than 25 centers globally are recruiting patients for the trial.

The four UK centers are the Royal Marsden, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust and the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

The test comes after the Health Secretary Wes Streeting Earlier this week he said he was “surprised” by the scientific advisers’ decision Limit prostate cancer screenings,

In a draft recommendation, the UK National Screening Committee (UKNSC), which advises the government, said prostate cancer screening should not be made routinely available to most men in the UK.

It said it would not recommend population screening using prostate-specific antigen (PSA) testing because it was “likely to cause more harm than good”.

Experts are expecting data within two years from a larger trial launched by Prostate Cancer UK to see whether combining PSA with other tests, such as rapid MRI scans, could lead to population-wide screening.

For now, the committee will only recommend screening men with BRCA1 and BRCA2 genetic mutations — which put them at far greater risk of prostate cancer — every two years, between the ages of 45 and 61.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast on Wednesday, Mr Streeting said he was surprised by the decision.

He said: “I am looking very carefully at why the National Screening Committee reached this decision.

“I have always said that these things should be based on science and evidence, not politics.

“But the recommendation surprised me.

“It’s controversial. I’ve got people in the prostate cancer community, not only really prominent patients and celebrities and politicians who have used their experience and their voices in this debate, but also among scientists and researchers.

“It’s a draft recommendation. They consult on it for three months, and then we have to take a final decision.”

“What I’m going to do is bring to the table some of the leading, best scientific voices and competing opinions to really interrogate the data and make sure that when I come into your program making a decision, it’s the right decision for the right reasons, with the best evidence and the public can then understand why we’ve made the decision and the scientific community can understand why we’ve made the decision.

“But I am questioning this data and recommendation because it surprised me.”

Many experts argue that the PSA test is not very reliable because men with high PSA levels may not have cancer, and some men with cancer have normal PSA results.

A positive test result could lead to unnecessary treatment for a slow-growing or harmless tumor, putting men at risk for side effects such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction.

But others argue that current evidence supports widespread testing.