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October 6, 2000/7 Tishri 5761, Vol. 53, No.2
Local doctor treats prostate cancer
BETH OLSON
Editorial Assistant
Approximately 32,000 men will die in the United States of prostate cancer this year, including 600 in Arizona, according to Dr. Scott Tropper, a board certified radiation oncologist and medical director of the Center for Radiation Therapy in Scottsdale.
Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men in the United States, as well as the second leading cause of cancer death, adds Tropper.
About 180,000 men in the U.S. will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year, about 3,300 of those in Arizona. There are currently three treatment options: surgery, medical oncology (chemotherapy) and radiation oncology, which is Tropper's specialty.
Tropper says the radiation treatments are usually delivered externally, but some tumors can be treated with prostate brachytherapy (prostate implant). Prostate brachytherapy involves the deposit of radioactive seeds directly into the prostate gland.
"We're delivering a very large dose (of radiation) to the prostate itself, but a very little dose to the surrounding normal tissue," says Tropper.
For the last 15 years, new technology has been used in treating prostate cancer with prostate brachytherapy, says Tropper. Now, ultrasound equipment is used to image the prostate during the procedure. Also, computer software has been developed, which allows doctors to "come up with computer plans that tell us exactly where we should be placing these seeds for the most effective treatment," he explains.
The advantages of prostate brachytherapy over other forms of treatment, says Tropper, are low incidence of side effects; short treatment time of about one hour; and a cure rate of 85 percent to 90 percent.
Tropper recently traveled to Asia, where he delivered lectures and performed prostate implants, including the first brachytherapy procedure ever done in Korea. This procedure was used on a diagnostic radiologist, who also serves as the head of the hospital where the procedure was performed. According to Tropper, there were about 50 doctors observing in the operating room.
He is in the process of opening the Urology Center of Excellence, "an outpatient, free-standing, doctor-owned facility that will be geared toward all urologic procedures, but primarily for treating prostate cancer." The center is scheduled to open early in 2001.
Tropper looks forward to inviting doctors from Asia, as well as Mexico, to observe prostate brachytherapy procedures at his new center. He then hopes to send doctors from his center to those countries to assist their physicians with the new procedures.
In November, the Center for Radiation Therapy will be performing free prostate cancer screenings. The screening will include a digital rectal exam, as well as a PSA (prostate specific antigens) test. Anyone who is interested in the free screening can call 480-945-6896.
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