Warfare is a common analogy often used to describe the fight against cancer. The “soldiers,” when using this type of example, would be surgery, radiation and hormone therapy. The “spies” are the body scans and blood tests that are used to determine the strength and location of the invading enemy. But who is the mastermind, the “general” who determines the overall strategy for winning the war?
With most types of cancer, medical oncologists are charged with the responsibility for supervising care. Medical oncologists are board-certified internists with subspecialty cancer training. Surprisingly however, with prostate cancer, it is usually the patient—with some educational input from the surgeons and radiation doctors—who ends up selecting treatment for himself.
Placed squarely in the driver’s seat, patients are therefore in desperate need of understandable, unbiased and up-to-date information about prostate cancer. The good news is that the pace of technological progress is accelerating, bringing numerous improvements to patient care. The bad news is the monumental task of sorting through endless mountains of information, more accessible than ever via the Internet.
The PCRI already hosts an annual September conference that is designed to help patients tackle this daunting challenge. However, given that new information is coming out so quickly, the PCRI has decided to inaugurate a “Mid-Year Update,” a half-day educational conference chaired by Drs. Mark Moyad and Mark Scholz, that is designed to bring patients the most recent information about prostate cancer management.
This year’s update, scheduled for Saturday afternoon, April 11th and to be held at the Los Angeles airport Marriott, will feature presentations by Dan Margolis MD, a leading expert in MRI imaging from UCLA, and Fabio Almeida MD, a leading expert on the latest breakthroughs in PET imaging. Dr. Mark Scholz will review the controversial topic of using testosterone and estrogen therapy in men and women. Doctor Mark Moyad will speak on the most recent studies relating to diet and supplements. An interactive question and answer forum chaired by doctors Moyad and Scholz will complete the day.
Further details about the conference are available at www.pcri.orgwww.pcri.org or by calling the PCRI office at (310) 743-2116.
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