Role of hormonal therapy in the management of intermediate- to high-risk prostate cancer treated with permanent radioactive seed implantation

Purpose: To study the impact of hormonal therapy (HTx) on intermediate- to high-risk prostate cancer treated With-permanent radioactive seed implantation. Methods and Materials: Patients with Stage T1b-T3bN0 prostate cancer, and Gleason score greater than or equal to7 or prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level >10 ng/mL were treated with seed implantation with or without HTx. Their disease was defined as intermediate risk (PSA 10-20, Gleason score 7, or Stage T2b) or high risk (two or more intermediate criteria, or PSA >20 ng/mL, Gleason score 8-10, or Stage T2c-T3). The median follow-up for 201 eligible patients was 42 months (range 18-110). Biochemical failure was defined as a rising PSA >1.0 ng/mL. Pretreatment disease characteristics, implant dose, and HTx were evaluated using univariate and multivariate analyses. Results: HTx significantly improved 5-year actuarial freedom from biochemical failure rate, 79% vs. 54% without HTx. In addition, high-dose, PSA :515 ng/mL, intermediate risk, and Stage T2a or lower significantly improved outcome in the univariate analyses. HTx was the most significant predictor of 5-year actuarial freedom from biochemical failure (p <0.0001) in a multivariate analysis. The best outcome was in the intermediate-risk patients treated with a high implant dose and HTx, resulting in a 4-year actuarial freedom from biochemical failure rate of 94%. Conclusion: In this retrospective review, HTx improved outcome in intermediate- to high-risk prostate cancer patients treated with brachytherapy. HTx was the most important prognostic factor in the univariate and multivariate analyses. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Inc.