New treatment should cut down the need to use drugs
Non-cancerous prostate cancer tumours can now be treated in 20 minutes, following the launch of a new laser treatment. The procedure ' available for the first time in the UK ' cuts down treatment time and minimises the need to use drugs to control tumour growth.
According to the Department of Health, there are currently 70,000 people in England waiting for urological surgery. Many of these patients wait for around six months for the most common surgery ' transurethal resection of the prostate (TURP) ' during which time they have to take powerful drugs to control the growth of the tumour.
The new treatment reduces the need for drugs, using a green light laser to cut away tumours. It also cuts the need for hospital stays, with the majority of patients going straight home, without even an overnight stay.
Gordon Muir, urology consultant at London's Kings College Hospital, said: 'This new treatment is no more complex to perform than TURP surgery. For small prostates, it can be completed in as little as 20 minutes and is also ideal or treating larger ones, which normally require major open surgery. It is a far less traumatic experience for the patient, with minimal bleeding. Recovery time and side effects are greatly reduced, which will encourage more men to opt for surgery.'
The treatment, which has been available in the US for the past five years, is now available at Kings College Hospital and Sussex Universities Hospital.
BUPA claims to be the first medical insurer in the UK to fund the new laser treatment for its policyholders. Dr Sally Cubbin, a medical director at BUPA, said: 'The last thing men want is to be taking drugs for extended periods of time while they are waiting for an operation and lengthy convalescence. This new laser treatment is much less invasive and has very few side effects.'
