Surgical castration for androgen-deprivation therapy of prostate cancer – relevance in current practice

Abstract

Objective:

Rapid control of the disease is essential in the management of patients with critical and symptomatic metastatic prostate cancer. Pharmacological castration has become the main form of androgen-deprivation therapy (ADT) for prostate cancer, with luteinising hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonists being used in more than 90% of cases. Surgical castration has become the less preferred modality. This article aims to explore the clinical and economic advantages of bilateral sub-capsular orchidectomy (BSCO).

Method:

Pre- and post-operative serial testosterone levels were taken from patients who had BSCO for adenocarcinoma of the prostate. The half-life of testosterone was calculated. The cost of surgical castration on the National Health Service (NHS) was compared to the cost of LHRH agonists.

Results:

Ten patients with a median prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level of 93 ng/ml (range 26 to 4557 ng/ml) were included. Their mean random pre-operative testosterone level was 13.8 ng/ml (range 6.8 to 21.8 ng/ml). The mean half-life of testosterone was 61.7 minutes when calculated from the first two hours, and 67 minutes when calculated from the total drop with no significant variation (p = 0.464). Four patients reached castrate levels of testosterone within four to six hours. The total cost of an inpatient BSCO in the NHS was £850 to £1154. This was more or less equivalent to one year’s worth of the commonly used LHRH agonists without including the cost of medical services.

Conclusions:

Testosterone has a short half-life and reaches castrate levels within hours of the BSCO procedure. Rapid castration by BSCO would benefit patients with critical metastatic disease. BSCO on the NHS in patients with more than one year of life expectancy is also economically beneficial.