The Treatments for Intermediate Risk Prostate Cancer

ABSTRACT

The population of intermediate-risk prostate cancer patients is a large heterogeneous group with diverse prognoses and challenges the struggle to develop more meticulous and standardized treatment recommendations. Furthermore, there are no specific treatment guidelines based on Korean patients although the cancer nature of this patient group is known to be somewhat different from those of western patients. This review will examine the treatment options for intermediate-risk prostate cancer patients in specific clinical situations. The literature provides evidence that combining androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for 6 months with radiation therapy (RT) may have superior survival than RT alone. Also, patients with adverse pathologic features and lymph node metastasis will benefit from adjuvant RT and ADT respectively after radical prostatectomy (RP). In addition, patients with life expectancy ≥10 years will benefit from lymphadenectomy during RP when lymph node metastasis is suspected as well as neurovascular bundle saving during RP is recommended because of its superior functional results.