why are there so few that have Brachytherapy ??

Dear Mike's Wife

I agree with Jim (N1BRP)--don't run away! I had a bias against all treatments except proton radiation. My older age at the time of treatment weighed heavily on my treatment decision. I stayed here, among many other good reasons, to hopefully educate others about proton radiation. However, I respect everyone's treatment choice which is usually a carefully thought out choice. As I said in one of my recent posts, many men have had successful seed implants with little or no negative side effects thereafter--we need to hear this from people like you! In fact, my radiation oncologist also does seed implants and he offered it to me as a choice of treatment. We need to get the "low down" on all types of PCa treatments here which might encourage more men to seriously evaluate and consider not only surgery, but the many other choices which may offer as much potential success as surgery with fewer side effects. I believe so many men opt for surgery because it gives them greater piece of mind when the cancerous prostate has been removed from their body. However, there is no guarantee (similar to all other treatments) that the cancer will not recur in the future. They also like the fact that their PSA should hopefully drop to "0" soon after surgery (unless residual cancer is left behind in the margins). With radiation it usually takes up to 2 or more years before the PSA reaches it nadir or low. Surgery is often the best solution for younger men in an earlier stage of PCa; they are often able to overcome incontinence and impotence better than older men. So stay here and keep us informed of your husband's progress with seed implants as the months and years go by! We really do need you!

Dave

The important thing is to make an informed decision about prostate cancer treatment. That said, each individual's decision is a personal weighing of the choices available to them.

One must make a decision, even if it is to do nothing. When I was given the news, my mind was not capable of making an informed decision. I am thankful that my urologist told us that we had time to research the options before deciding. 

For several months, we researched treatment options available to me, including brachytherapy, surgery and proton radiation, fortunate that I had options to choose from. My wife was an equal and essential partner in my/our decision.

I do not criticize anyone here, directly or by implication, for the personal choice they made for their prostate cancer treatment.