A comparison of brachytherapy (BR) with conventional external beam radiation therapy (EBRT) for prostate cancer (PC)

Introduction: Through 1992 EBRT was the primary treatment modality for PC in our community. In 1993, there was a transition to BR as the primary treatment. We performed a preliminary retrospective analysis to begin to compare the results of the two treatments to try to define the relative role of each modality. Materials and Methods: There were 48 EBRT patients (T3 patients excluded for comparison with BR) from 1992 (med age 75 yrs; min FU 36 mos; med FU 40 mos; 18 T1, 30 T2; 6,480 cGy, 4 fields) and 86 BR PTS (med age 68 yrs; min FU 12 mos; med FU 20 mos; 38 T1, 48 T2; I125 to 1,600 cGy or Pd 103 to 12,000 cGy). A follow up PSA of 1.5 ng/ml or less was used as the criteria for beneficial outcome. Results: Treatment results will also be presented and stratified by T-substage and Gleason score. Conclusion: This preliminary analysis suggests that BT may have a greater likelihood of achieving the desired PSA nadir than conventional EBRT (6,480 cGy). Longer follow up in the BR arm and further study with more EBRT and BR patients which is ongoing will help further define the relative value of each modality