Lymph Node Aspiration in Staging Prostatic Carcinoma: Importance of the Equivocal Lymphogram

Abstract

There are many controversies and treatment regimens in managing patients with prostatic carcinoma. The available treatment modalities have differing rates of success and complications. Extent and aggressiveness of the various treatments differ according to the treatment philosophy of the physician. Some are aggressive and aim for cure even in advanced disease, while others opt for symptomatic therapy, leaving curative therapy for those patients proved to have localised disease. In any case, accurate staging of extent of disease allows the most careful matching of treatment to patient. Over-staging localised disease as regionally metastatic may deny potentially curative therapy to those with localised disease, or may greatly increase complications by improperly extending aggressive therapy. Understaging may erroneously restrict aggressive therapy to the prostate or deny more systemic therapy with a better chance at cure or palliation.