Funding research and education to beat prostate disease
Palliative care
Palliative care aims to provide you with support to make you feel comfortable and composed in the final stages of your illness. Over recent years, considerable progress has been made in palliative care.
If your prostate cancer progresses to this stage, you will usually be assigned a palliative care team - specialist doctors and nurses who have considerable expertise and experience in this area, and who will support you and your family. You will have opportunities to talk to members of the team about your care, and you should discuss any medical, social or financial worries that you have.
Patients with very advanced prostate cancer tend to experience bone pain, and you may be given strong and effective painkillers to help overcome this. In addition, you may have radiotherapy (either as a short course or a one off treatment). If you are offered radiotherapy, make sure that you know whether it is likely to result in other side effects, such as nausea and vomiting, so that you can weigh up the advantages and disadvantages in the light of all the facts and your own circumstances.
Bisphosphonates
Bisphosphonates are normally used to treat osteoporosis as they help to stabilise bone structure and reduce bone loss. They may be helpful in advanced prostate cancer which has spread to the bones, by reducing the risk of fractures and other skeletal problems. Bisphosphonates may also help to reduce bone pain.
Side-effects are minor and more men with advanced prostate cancer are being offered this treatment. Zometa (zoledronic acid) is licensed for treating cancer that has spread to the bone. It is given through a drip and the treatment is repeated every three to four weeks. Various other drugs are being tested in clinical trials.
Another effective method of alleviating bone pain is with injections of a radioactive substance known as strontium.
With palliative care, the first consideration of the medical team should be to preserve your dignity and help your family and friends to support you, ideally in your own home.
