Chemotherapy uses anti-cancer (cytotoxic) medicines to kill the
prostate cancer cells, wherever they are in the body. It will not
get rid of your prostate cancer but it may help to control symptoms
such as pain. It may also help some men to live longer.
You may be offered chemotherapy if your cancer has spread to
other parts of the body (advanced prostate cancer) and is no longer
responding to hormone therapy. Some men may be offered chemotherapy
at an earlier stage of their disease, as part of a clinical
trial.
The side effects are sometimes difficult to cope with so you
need to be reasonably fit before you begin treatment. Your doctor
or nurse will assess your general health and discuss the advantages
and disadvantages of treatment with to help you decide whether
chemotherapy is right for you.
There are several chemotherapy medicines that may be used to treat
prostate cancer, including docetaxel (Taxotere®), cabazitaxel
(Jevtana®) and mitoxantrone (Novantrone®). You may have
chemotherapy alongside other treatments such as palliative
radiotherapy, bisphosphonates, pain-relieving drugs, and
steroids.
What
other treatments are available?
Updated January 2012
To be reviewed January 2014