Biochemical outcome for hormone-naïve patients with high-risk prostate cancer managed with permanent interstitial brachytherapy and supplemental external-beam radiation.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this article is to report the 5-year biochemical disease-free outcome for hormone-naive patients with high-risk disease who underwent permanent prostate brachytherapy. Multiple clinical and treatment parameters were also evaluated to determine whether any of these influence biochemical outcome.


METHODS
Sixty-six hormone-naïve patients underwent transperineal ultrasound-guided permanent prostate brachytherapy with generous periprostatic margins by use of either 103Pd or 125I for high-risk prostate cancer from April 1995 to October 1999. High-risk patients presented with two or three of the following risk factors: Gleason score > or = 7, prostate-specific antigen > or = 10 ng/mL, and clinical stage > or = T2b, 1997 AJCC. No patient underwent pathological lymph node staging. Only one patient was implanted with monotherapy, whereas 65 patients received supplemental external-beam radiation therapy before a prostate brachytherapy boost. The median patient age was 69 years (range, 50-81 years). No patient was lost to follow-up. The mean follow-up and median follow-up were 53.2 +/- 14.9 months and 53.7 months, respectively (range, 19.8-79.7 months). Follow-up was calculated from the day of implantation. Biochemical disease-free survival was defined by the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology consensus definition. Clinical parameters evaluated for biochemical disease-free survival included patient age, clinical stage, Gleason score, and pretreatment prostate-specific antigen. Treatment parameters included use of supplemental external-beam radiation therapy and choice of isotope.


RESULTS
The 5-year actuarial biochemical disease-free survival rate was 79.9%. In multivariate analysis, preimplantation prostate-specific antigen (P = 0.008) was the only clinical or treatment parameter that predicted for biochemical failure. The mean and median posttreatment prostate-specific antigen levels were 0.13 +/- 0.22 ng/mL and < 0.1 ng/mL, respectively.


CONCLUSIONS
At a median follow-up of 53.7 months, hormone-naive patients with high-risk disease who undergo permanent prostate brachytherapy have a high probability of 5-year biochemical disease-free survival and an apparent plateau on the biochemical disease-free survival curve.
Schiffler Cancer Center, Wheeling Hospital, West Virginia 26003-6300, USA.
Gregory S
GS
Merrick
Wayne M
WM
Butler
Jonathan H
JH
Lief
Robert W
RW
Galbreath
Edward
E
Adamovich
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001918:Brachytherapy; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes / Q000627:therapeutic use; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D010165:Palladium / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000097:blood / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D011868:Radioisotopes / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011879:Radiotherapy Dosage; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate
D007457:Iodine Radioisotopes; D011868:Radioisotopes; D010165:Palladium; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen