Cryotherapy

• Cryotherapy is the controlled freezing of the prostate gland and surrounding tissue by delivering liquid nitrogen through probes to the area. A minimum of two cycles of freezing and thawing are needed to destroy the prostate cancer cells. Since malignant prostate cells are especially resilient, and the procedure is very imprecise, risks and complications are significant. Side effects include urinary incontinence, scrotal swelling, penile pain or numbness and loss of erections.
  
  

Thermal Therapy

• Thermal therapies, which are strictly experimental and not approved outside of a formal clinical trial, virtually cook the prostate cancer cells. High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) sends out destructive heat energy to kill the malignant cells. Although safer than cryotherapy, the procedure indicates benefits on small cancers, but troubling side effects, including urinary blockage, when treating large tumors.
  
  Radiofrequency ablation (RFA) also attempts to kill cancer cells by delivering destructive energy through needles. As the therapy is relatively new, little is known of the long-term effects.
  
  

Photodynamic Therapy

• Photodynamic therapy, also known as light therapy, intravenously delivers a powerful chemical derived from plant chlorophyll into the prostate. A laser light source is then inserted into the gland which activates the chemical, killing the cancer and its blood supply. Clinical trials have not yet made long-term side effects known.
  
  

Gene Therapy

• Gene therapy injects a virus that infiltrates the cancer cells and leaves behind a gene called tk, or the suicide gene. Later, when the antiviral drug ganciclovar is administered, the altered cancer cells render the drug lethal, and the cancer is killed. According to Peter T. Scardino, M.D., Chairman of the Department of Urology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, costs to develop this therapy have limited its potential financial reward, and it has not had much research.
  
  

Acupuncture

• Acupuncture is a therapy that uses needles to correct energy flow in the body. When placed in certain locations, the needles release chemicals that may improve healing. While no specific studies are available regarding the efficacy of acupuncture in prostate cancer, it may help relieve cancer pain and chemotherapy nausea.
  
  

Dietary Therapy

• Although controversial, dietary therapies may decrease the risk of prostate cancer. The effects of lycopene, a strong antioxidant found in cooked tomatoes, soy products and green tea are currently under study.