Diagnosed 8 weeks ago. Gleason 4.3= 7
Recommended as a candidate for NanoKnife therapy.
Supposed total ablation of cancer tissue with little to no side effects
Anybody here able to give more info.
Hi bernie, sounds interesting. I'm in a similar situation. I hope somebody can shed more light on it.
Yabbie
Hey Bernie
I also have a glesson score of 7 at least I had 2 years ago dont;t know what it is yet lab tomorrow. My doctor wants me to get a full castration. But Im not sure I want that. So can you tell me what is a Nanaoknife therapy? Thanks I am looking into all the options that I can afford.
What is your age?
Means nothing to me - sounds like a windup - but I await more info.
NanoKnife therapy is an experimental procedure on prostate cancer where electrodes are placed into the cancer and an electrical charge is administered to ablate the cancer and surrounding tissue without surgery. Being trialled at St Vincents in Sydney Australia and St Lukes London England. Approximately 30 cases have been reported on with excellent results so far. I'm wondering if any readers here may have had the procedures
I'm 65.
Google Professor Stricker. St Vincents Hospital Sydney Australia.
George,
I did some research into 'NanoKnife therapy' and it is indeed impressive. Kills the cancer cells (by electric charge) but spares the nerves and good cells.
Patients are treated as 'outpatients' with little after effects and no ongoing problems.
It's like the difference of 'key hole' surgery vs full 'open you up' surgery.
Very clever.
Google 'NanoKnife therapy' and do some reading.
I'm glad to see it in Sydney where I am. Usually these new things are on the other side of the Earth.
I'm going to keep an eye on it.
Bernie, I like the sound of it.
Ask the Professor if you could be contacted by any of his previous patients, for their story.
Yabbie
I know nothing about Nano knife.
but I do know that prof stricker is in my opinion, the best surgeon who I am sure would alert you to all the options available not just surgery.
he operated on me a few weeks ago.
See my comment to yabbie, when it should have been directed to you
NanoKnife® provides a minimally invasive option for patients with inoperable or difficult-to-reach tumors, including tumors located near critical structures and major blood vessels in the body. Instead of using extreme heat or cold, which could damage normal adjacent tissues, the NanoKnife System uses electrical currents to destroy cancerous tumors.
Instead of using microwave energy, extreme heat or extreme cold, the NanoKnife System uses electrical currents to treat tumors.
While the patient is under general anesthesia, the interventional radiologist carefully guides up to six thin needles (electrodes) into the patient’s body and strategically places them around the tumor. Then, the NanoKnife System sends electrical pulses or currents between each set of needles to puncture permanent nanometer-sized holes into the tumor. This process, called irreversible electroporation (IRE), causes the cancer cells to be unbalanced and triggers a cell “suicide,” thereby destroying the tumor.
The electrical pulses are contained between the electrodes, minimizing damage to surrounding healthy cell tissue, blood vessels and other important structures. After the tumor is destroyed, the body naturally rids itself of the dead cells, which are replaced with healthy cells.
The procedure lasts from two to four hours and is performed on an outpatient basis. The patient is also given antibiotics before and after the procedure to prevent infection
Potential benefits of NanoKnife include:
No open incisions
Less damage to healthy tissue
Minimal postoperative pain
Fewer side effects
Short hospital stay
Quick post-operative recovery
Ability to repeat the procedure if new tumors develop
Thank you - sounds very impressive - why I wonder is it not all over the national press who enjoy Prostate Cancer stories.
I will ask my Urologist when I see him on 15 Dec - now on 6 months check ups as long as PSA stays at 0.01. Zoladex sweats ar not as brutal as they were but can be imbarrassing in a restuarant.
Keep smiling
Felix , that procedure sounds great BUT it sounds like it would cost an arm and a leg. I am guessing that since it is a new procedure that the insurance companies have not offered it to there customers. Let me know if I am wrong.
If the current excellent results hold up then the cost is irrelevant. The procedure does not have an Australian Billing Code but the normal items (theater.anesthesia.etc) do.
I've been quoted $25,000.
Seems to be a no brainer.
Waiting for my health cover to confirm normal items are covered.
Don't just focus on the technique, any technique.
focus on the depth of experience of he who applies the therapy, be it nano knife or radical surgery or something else.
You are right. Surgeon, assistant surgeon, anaesthiologist and pathology approx $28,000
on top of that is the hospital room and expenses that relate to that. Insurance pays for that, if you have private cover.
Ive posted this before, but you may have missed it- Your cancer specialists are in the best position to answer questions because each of us has distinctly different conditions- i.e. your age, country of origin, past history, health, previous health issues, etc. The machine you mention is an external beam radiation device, one of many on the market. Usuallt EBRT is just a part of the overall therapy program. In the US, Harvard Medical and the National Cancer Society have published guidelines and pamphlets available online. The latest research and standards are also published online. Below, Ive extracted a portion of the new guidelines. These are for men in the low to intermediate cancer risk, based on your therapist's interpretation of data.
Table 2: Boosting the effectiveness of radiation therapy
A randomized controlled study involving 206 men with early-stage prostate cancer evaluated whether adding six months of hormone therapy to external-beam radiation treatment would boost both overall survival and disease-free survival (meaning that the men did not suffer a relapse). The results are given below. The same research group found, in an earlier study, that the addition of hormone therapy was of most benefit to men who were considered at moderate or high risk, based on their clinical profile.
Five-year follow-up Radiation treatment alone Radiation treatment and hormone therapy
Percentage of men who survived 78% 88%
Percentage of men who avoided relapse 57% 82%
Source: Journal of the American Medical Association, 2004;292:821–7. PMID: 15315996.
Combined with radiation therapy. A number of studies have shown that men with early-stage prostate cancer are more likely to be cured when hormone therapy is given in conjunction with radiation therapy (see Table 2 above for the results of one study). Even when the disease is regionally advanced, meaning that it has progressed to tissues immediately surrounding the prostate gland, neoadjuvant hormone therapy reduces risk of progression and relapse (see “Evidence for combining hormone therapy and radiation treatment”).
See harvardprostateknowledge dot org for the complete discussion by Dr Marc B. Garnick, M.D.,from Harvard Medical.
Another resource is the American Society of Radiation Oncology. They recently published the results of an enhanced study of patients with low to intermediate prostate cancer. Here is an excerpt:
Ten-year findings from the trial indicate that for men with early stage prostate cancer, there is no difference in mortality rates following active monitoring, surgery or RT, and moreover, that cancer-specific deaths at ten years following diagnosis averaged only one percent for all men enrolled in the trial.
Growth of the cancer outside of the prostate did vary between monitoring and treatment groups. Rates of both regional spread and distant metastases were significantly higher for men who were monitored rather than treated for their early stage disease. Progression did not vary, however, between the surgery and RT groups, although patients in the trial reported different side effects with each modality.
“These findings underscore the essential role of dialogue in treatment selection,” said ASTRO President David C. Beyer, MD, FASTRO. “Men with prostate cancer are all different, and the relative costs and benefits associated with the multiple options to treat it can vary substantially between individuals. The best treatment decisions for prostate cancer, or any cancer, take into consideration the specifics of each individual patient’s disease, expectations and preferences. These options can be confusing, and patients should always make these decisions after consultation with a radiation oncologist and urologist”
Best of luck in your therapy.
Thanks for your interest.
I don't want advice on treatments that harm healthy body parts.
My only interest is in treatments that deal directly with the cancer and cure it or minimise its impact moving forward.
This is my 3rd cancer.
Both previous treatments have impacted my quality of life.
Though thankfully I am here to write about it.
While you want a treatment that deals directly with the cancer and doesn't impact on your QoL, don't forget to ask any uriolhgsiy you meet
What Gleason score and tumor types are most suited to Nanoknife?
What is the five and ten year survival rate?
What are the impacts on sexual health and urinary function?
these can best be answers by an excellent surgeon that ideally knows what treatment to recommend based in your biopsy and medical history.