Short-term outcome after high-intensity focused ultrasound in the treatment of patients with high-risk prostate cancer

OBJECTIVE: To assess the short-term outcome in patients with high-risk prostate cancer treated by transrectal high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU). PATIENTS AND METHODS: From April 2003 to November 2004, 30 patients with high-risk prostate cancer were enrolled in this prospective study; all had transurethral resection of the prostate before transrectal HIFU treatment, using the Ablatherm device (EDAP, Lyon, France) during the same session, associated with hormonal therapy with luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analogues. After the procedure, all the patients were evaluated every 3 months by physical examination, prostate-specific antigen (PSA) assay and a continence questionnaire. The follow-up schedule also included a transperineal prostate biopsy 6 months after the treatment. All the patients had a minimum follow-up of 12 months. RESULTS: The HIFU treatment took a median (interquartile range, IQR) of 140 (100-160) min. No complications were reported during treatment. The mean (IQR) hospitalization was 2.2 (1-4) days, and the suprapubic drainage tube was removed after 12 (7-18) days. The complications after treatment were: urinary tract infections in five patients (16%), stenosis of the intraprostatic and membranous urethra in three (10%), and secondary infravesical obstruction in four (13%). At 12 months after the procedure, 28 patients (93%) were continent. Seven of the 30 men (23%) had a positive prostate biopsy. At the 1-year follow-up only three of the 30 patients with high-risk prostate cancer had a PSA level of >0.3 ng/mL. CONCLUSIONS: HIFU is a modern, minimally invasive therapy for prostate cancer, often used in selected patients with localized disease. The present results show that HIFU was also feasible in patients with high-risk prostate cancer. The low complication rates and favourable functional outcome support the planning of further larger studies in such patients. The oncological efficacy of HIFU should be assessed in further studies with a longer follow-up.