Overview
- This week Imperial College London published ten-year outcomes for 3,477 men treated with focal therapy using HIFU or cryotherapy that recorded two prostate-cancer deaths (0.13%) and a 3.3% rate of metastasis.
- Researchers reported about a five-fold lower risk of severe side effects such as urinary incontinence, erectile dysfunction and rectal problems compared with whole-gland prostatectomy or radiotherapy.
- Prostate Cancer UK and leading clinicians have urged an urgent review by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence so the treatment can be routinely commissioned across the NHS.
- The UK Government has announced extra funding to expand provision but current NHS access is concentrated in a few specialist centres and only about 1,000 men receive focal therapy each year.
- If NICE approves wider use, an estimated 50–66% of localized prostate cancers—around 15,000 men annually—could be eligible which would cut long-term harms and reshape treatment and screening choices.