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Definition
By Mayo Clinic staffCryotherapy for prostate cancer freezes prostate tissue, causing cancer cells to die. As a minimally invasive procedure, cryotherapy for prostate cancer is sometimes used as an alternative to surgical removal of the prostate gland (prostatectomy).
In the past, cryotherapy for prostate cancer was associated with significantly higher levels of long-term side effects than were other prostate cancer treatments. Advances in the technology of cryotherapy for prostate cancer have reduced these side effects. Most men, however, still experience long-term sexual dysfunction following cryotherapy for prostate cancer.
Cryotherapy for prostate cancer is most often used in men who have early-stage prostate cancer. But cryotherapy for prostate cancer may also be a treatment option in some men whose prostate cancer has returned following other treatments.
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- Other treatment options. Prostate Cancer Foundation. http://www.pcf.org/site/c.leJRIROrEpH/b.5835255/k.7B41/Other_Treatment_Options.htm. Accessed Dec. 8, 2010.
- Babaian RJ, et al. Best practice statement on cryosurgery for the treatment of localized prostate cancer. The Journal of Urology. 2008;180:1993.
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