The TNM method of staging cancer, which is commonly used to stage malignancies that produce tumours, is utilised to stage prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is staged using two additional parameters: PSA levels and grade (based on the Gleason score).
Stage II of prostate cancer
Stage III of prostate cancer has spread beyond the prostate to the nearby tissues, but not to any lymph nodes or distant tissues. DRE tests are used to detect certain malignancies, and screening examinations are also used to detect them. There are three types of this stage:
Stage IIIA
T1 or T2, N0, M0, Grade Group 1 to 4, Gleason score of 8, and PSA levels of at least 20 are the stages of cancer at this time.
Stage IIIB
Cancer has spread to the seminal vesicles (T3) or other tissues adjacent to the prostate, such as the urethral sphincter, rectum, bladder, and/or the pelvic wall (T4). With a Gleason score of 8 or fewer and any levels of PSA, it is staged as T3 or T4, N0, M0, Grade Group 1 to 4, Grade Group 1 to 4.
stage IIIC
In stage IIIC, the disease has spread to any surrounding tissues and is classified as Any T, N0, M0, Grade Group 5, with a Gleason score of 8 or 9 and any PSA levels.
What is the treatment for stage III prostate cancer?
The following are some of the therapy options for stage III prostate cancer:
- External beam radiation along with hormone therapy
- External beam and brachytherapy with hormone therapy
- Radical prostatectomy may or may not be followed by radiation therapy
External Beam radiation
It is a sort of radiation therapy that involves the use of high-energy X-ray beams to eliminate malignant cells. External beam radiation therapy, also known as EBRT, uses a machine outside the body to focus radiation beams on the prostate gland, which is used to treat cancer in its early stages.
Brachytherapy
Radiation therapy also includes brachytherapy. Small radioactive pellets the size of a grain of rice are implanted directly inside the prostate gland, a procedure known as seed implantation or interstitial radiation therapy. This treatment is used alone in people with cancer that is in its early stages and is growing slowly. Otherwise, it is preferable to use this in conjunction with other therapeutic options.
Radical prostatectomy:
Surgery is the preferred treatment option for prostate malignancies that are symptomatic but limited to the prostate gland. The most common procedure is radical prostatectomy, which involves removing not just the prostate gland but also the surrounding tissue, including the seminal vesicles. The two types of procedures are radical retropubic prostatectomy and radical perineal prostatectomy, which differ in how the prostate is addressed.
Hormone therapy
Hormone therapy for prostate cancer (5.14) is used when cancer has spread too far for radiation or surgery to be effective, or when the cancer is at a danger of recurrence, or to shrink cancer before radiation therapy. This medication, also known as androgen deprivation therapy or androgen suppression therapy, tries to lower the levels of androgens, male hormones that encourage prostate growth in humans. Hormone therapy can decrease the tumor or slow its progression, but it is not a cure for prostate cancer.
