Undetectable PSA after radiation possible

PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 4 (UPI) -- Prostate specific antigen levels can be undetectable in prostate cancer patients treated with radiation alone, U.S. researchers said.

Study leader Dr. Eric Horwitz of Philadelphia's Fox Chase Cancer Center said new radiation techniques produce fewer side effects while delivering higher doses of radiation directly to the tumor.

"With high quality radiation -- whether it is from an implant or external beam -- it is possible to get really low PSAs, and if you do, you have a really good chance of being cured," Horwitz said in a statement.

Horwitz and colleagues looked at records for 1,330 prostate cancer patients treated between 1989-2005 with radiation therapy alone.

The 154 men who had undetectable PSA after therapy were 59 percent less likely to have biochemical failure than men who had detectable PSA after therapy. The risk of recurrence as well as the number of cancer-specific deaths were also lowered, the researchers said.

The findings were presented at the annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology in Chicago.