Statement on Prostate Cancer from the Turkish Medical Oncology Association

Turkish Medical Oncology Association, within the scope of September 15 "World Prostate Cancer Awareness Day"; He organized a press release where current data on prostate cancer, screening methods, factors that increase the risk of cancer, precautions that can be taken and current treatment approaches were discussed. In the statement made at a hotel in Ankara, Turkish Medical Oncology Association Board Member Assoc. Dr. Tülay Eren and Gazi University Faculty of Medicine, Department of Medical Oncology, Assoc. Dr. Fatih Gürler shared important information about prostate cancer.

Prostat kanserinin Türkiye’de erkeklerde akciğer kanserinden sonra en sık görülen ikinci kanser olduğuna dikkat çeken Eren, Türkiye'de her yıl yaklaşık 19 bin erkeğe prostat kanseri tanısı konulduğunu, yaklaşık 5 bin erkeğin ise bu hastalık nedeniyle yaşamını yitirdiğini belirtti. Eren explained this in other words, "Every day in Turkey, approximately 50 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer and approximately 13 men die due to this disease."

"PSA AT RIGHT INTERVALS, NOT EVERY YEAR"

Prostate cancer is not just an individual disease; Stating that cancer is an important public health problem due to its incidence, the deaths it causes and the disease burden it creates in the advanced stages, Eren stated that although cancer is rare in men under the age of 40, the risk of its occurrence begins to increase rapidly after the age of 50. Eren warned every man over the age of 50, "Even if he does not have any complaints, he should talk to his doctor about the risk of prostate cancer and whether the PSA test is suitable for him."

'CANCER CELLS CAN BE IMAGED WITH PRECISION'

Gürler made statements about treatment methods. Noting that they can image prostate cancer cells more precisely and use these features for treatment in appropriate patients, Gürler said, "We find a target on the prostate cancer cell and try to direct the treatment to that target as directly as possible with a method we call radioligand therapy such as Lutetium. These developments show us that the future of prostate cancer treatment will be more personalized and more targeted."

Gürler stated that he wanted to give three messages to the society and said, "First; know your risk and care about early diagnosis. Second; do not despair about prostate cancer. In the early stage, prostate cancer is a disease that can be treated with high success. In the advanced stage, we have many more and effective treatment options than in the past. Third and perhaps the most important; do not abandon science in cancer treatment."