Prostate Cancer: Immunotherapy Offers Hope

There is a silver lining in the Covid-19 pandemic situation that has taught us to stay fit and adopt a healthy lifestyle for a prosperous life. Being fit and healthy was always a topic of discussion, but now many people around the globe have realized its importance. Isn’t it? It is vital to building a strong immunity to fight infections and stay away from other chronic illnesses such as diabetes, obesity, heart problems, and other cancers. One such cancer we are talking about here is Prostate cancer.

What is prostate cancer?

Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer which is observed in men representing 7% of cases globally. The numbers are rising enormously even in India. Men get exposed to prostate cancer because unwanted tumor cells develop in their prostate gland leading to prostate cancer. The good news is that prostate cancer is curable if detected and treated at an early stage. There are various prostate cancer treatment options available in India such as surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immunotherapy.

Let’s dive deep into immunotherapy treatment options in treating prostate cancer. Researchers have seen a remarkable hope of survival with immunotherapy treatment in India to treat prostate cancer in men. Prostate cancer treatment in India is available at an affordable rate compared to other developed nations around the globe with an expert team of doctors, great infrastructure, and advanced technologies.

What is immunotherapy?

Immunotherapy is the use of one’s own immune system to destroy cancerous cells in the body. It is already licensed in treating other cancers such as melanoma cancer and is undergoing more research to see its impact on other forms of cancers.

Gleneagles Global hospital provides the best treatment of prostate cancer in India.

How does it work?

There is a molecule named CTLA-4 that is responsible for controlling part of the immune system by lowering the threshold. By disabling the immune system’s endogenous barrier, cancer cells can get around it. Checkpoint inhibitor (CPI) is an antibody that targets CTLA-4 by blocking its deactivation and activating the immune system back again. This reactivated immune system can then fight cancer cells in the body.

You can seek help from the best hospitals and team of oncologists in India to treat advanced prostate cancer in men. As mentioned earlier, prostate cancer treatment cost in India is relatively cheap compared to other western countries globally. The total cost in treating prostate cancer in India comprises $13,200 including medical evaluation, cost of surgery, immunotherapy, and radiation.

What did the study find?

To prove how far this statement is true, a clinical trial was conducted on a total of 799 men with prostate problems. It was conducted in the USA, Europe, Australia, and Canada. Patients were subdivided into a ratio of 1:1 to receive radiotherapy followed by either placebo every 3 weeks through injections or through IgG1 antibody (immunotherapy). The group study then concluded that the survival rate in radiotherapy was present but not significant whereas in other groups there were 2-3 times higher chances of survival after 4-5 years in immunotherapy as opposed to placebo every 3 weeks via 4 injection shots.

When given immunotherapy, the tumors either disappeared or shrank giving extra lives to people and hope to live for many years. While 19% of men saw improvement in their health while some survived for 8 months. This means there is a chance of prostate cancer curable.

It is not that immunotherapy has been used for the first time. It is sanctioned and licensed by the European Medicines Agency in treating bladder, lung, and melanoma cancer as mentioned earlier. However, to use immunotherapy in prostate cancer, more research is required because the first analysis, did not show reliable survival chances.

However, some experts have to say that Immunotherapy can be used when chemotherapy has been ruled out in treating prostate cancer. If immunotherapy is given at an early stage, the survival chances are higher and yield good results in terms of treatment. More research is going to take place in the long term where immunotherapy will be given to prostate cancer men before chemotherapy to judge the results.

Conclusion:

Immunotherapy is an antibody for treating advanced prostate cancer in men. The studies have shown that there is a 2-3 times higher chance of survival in men when compared to other treatment options such as chemotherapy. Immunotherapy has already seen a significant advantage in treating other forms of cancer such as lung, bladder, and melanoma cancer and now in prostate cancer research, a proportion of men have shown great response to the treatment.