Approach to Prostate Cancer Diagnosis: Insights from Biden’s Patient Care Strategies

Prostate cancer specialists assert that former President Joseph R. Biden’s diagnosis is grave. Announced by his team on Sunday, it was revealed that the cancer has metastasized to his bones and is classified as Stage 4, the most severe stage of the illness. This condition is currently incurable.

However, prostate cancer professionals highlight that advancements in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer have significantly improved the outlook for men facing advanced disease, primarily based on research funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Department of Defense.

“We’ve explored numerous avenues for intervention,” remarked Daniel W. Lynn, a prostate cancer specialist at the University of Washington.

Dr. Judd Mull, a prostate cancer expert at Duke University, noted that men experiencing prostate cancer that has spread to the bones can now “survive five, seven, ten years or even longer” with current treatments. In the 1980s, men like Biden might “wish to pass away from natural causes rather than from prostate cancer,” he pointed out.

Biden’s office indicated that he experienced urinary symptoms, which prompted him to seek medical evaluation.

However, Dr. Lin expressed skepticism, stating, “I don’t believe his symptoms were related to the cancer.”

Instead, he suggested that the most plausible sequence was that doctors had examined Biden, discovered a nodule in his prostate, and conducted blood tests and prostate-specific antigen tests. PSA tests detect proteins produced by cancer cells and can follow blood tests and MRIs that indicate cancer.

Currently, Biden and other patients diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer are in a better situation than past patients. There are approximately ten novel treatments available for the disease that have significantly altered the prognosis.

The primary strategy is to inhibit the testosterone that fuels prostate cancer. When Dr. Muru began his practice as a urologist in the 1980s, this was achieved by surgically removing the testicles. Today, men have the option of two medications administered via injection that prevent testosterone production, alongside oral pills that achieve the same result.

However, these medications alone are insufficient. Therefore, physicians typically add one of several androgen blockers that further suppress testosterone.

Some men receive supplementary treatments such as chemotherapy or radiation, depending on the extent to which the cancer might spread within the bones.

There have also been advancements in diagnostic procedures.

Previously, doctors assessed the degree of cancer in the bones through scans that detected inflammation. Now, they utilize a more precise scan known as the Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen (PSMA) PET scan. This scan employs a radioactive tracer that binds to markers on the surface of prostate cells, allowing for faster cancer detection. Consequently, men with prostate cancer cells in their bones now often have a considerably better prognosis compared to those who underwent bone scans just a few years ago.

Additionally, there are medications available that block testosterone and others that can target cancer if chemotherapy and radiation therapy become ineffective.

Dr. Lynn pointed out that increased federal research funding, alongside Biden’s initiative to prioritize cancer research, has contributed to these advancements. He noted that Biden was “one of the first presidents to elevate cancer awareness.”

Regarding Dr. Muru, he remarked that men who develop stage 4 prostate cancer are now often filled with a sense of hope.

“There are now even more resources at our disposal,” Dr. Moul added. “The survival rate has nearly tripled in the last decade. The extent of change is truly remarkable.”