Prostate cancer has many possible treatments, and often different treatments are used together to achieve the best results. One method of treatment is Brachytherapy, which is when a number of radiation seeds are implanted into the tumour in the prostate gland. The seeds then give a dose of radiation to the tumour over a period of time, usual several months although this varies.

Brachytherapy is a different form of radiotherapy, but has the same principle. The idea of the therapy is to use radiation to kill the cancerous cells. In the case of radiation seeds, the seeds provide the dose of radiation required. The levels of radiation are not harmful to the rest of the body, but can cause long and short term side effects.

Radiation seeds for prostate cancer can cause the following short term side effects:

Diarrhoea
Loss of pubic hair
Tiredness
Cystitis – causes painful urination

Radiation seeds for prostate cancer can cause the following long term side effects:

Inability of difficulty in achieving an erection
Urinary Incontinence
However, radiation seeds (Brachytherapy) have a lower chance of causing urinary incontinence compared to normal radiotherapy.

With all radiotherapy these is an approximately 33% chance that the cancer will return in the future after it has been killed by the radiation.

Radiotherapy is often used together with hormone therapy to achieve the most successful results. For example, hormone therapy (which blocks the testosterone the cancer needs to grow) is often performed before radiotherapy. Patients always have the final say as to which treatment they want to use, but the doctor will advise what he or she thinks is the best course of action.
Do you want to know more about prostate cancer? To find out more about the disease, please visit FAQ on prostate cancer.

ProstateCancerFAQ.org.