Definitive Radiotherapy in Carcinoma of the Prostate

Carcinoma of the prostate may be treated by radical resection, limited resection with concomitant castration and/or administration of estrogens, or definitive radiation therapy. This latter mode of treatment has recently been reintroduced and appears to hold promise in the treatment of prostatic cancer. 12-15 Even though the efficacy of hormone management in localized carcinoma has been seriously questioned by the recent publication of the Veterans Administration Cooperative Urological Research Group, 16 a clear understanding of the extent of the disease is a necessary prerequisite to the selection of appropriate therapy. Although there is no staging system for carcinoma of the prostate which has been generally accepted, the classifications adopted by the VA Cooperative Study Group 16 and the Radiotherapy Cooperative Study Group (written communication from J. A. Del Regato, MD, from the protocol and experimental design for a cooperative study of radiotherapy for carcinoma of the prostate, stage C, July