WHAT IS THE OPTIMAL PATIENT SELECTION FOR COMBINED ANDROGEN ABLATIVE AND RADIATION-THERAPY - THE ROLE OF COMBINED-MODALITY STAGING

The 5-year results of neoadjuvant androgen suppression and external be am radiation therapy for locally advanced prostate cancer show improve d rates of local, distant, and biochemical control compared with exter nal beam radiation therapy alone. With longer follow-up, the effect of the combined modality therapy on cause-specific and overall survival will be seen. The method of combined modality staging provides an opti mized assessment of the pathologic extent of local disease prior to ma nagement and, therefore, is better able to define those patients in wh om only local therapy is likely to be curative. Knowing the pathologic extent of disease prior to therapy also provides the rationale for th e current phase 3 trials.