Treatment for prostate cancer can cause debilitating side-effects, including incontinence, a loss of libido and impotence according to a recent article by Roger Dobson in the Daily Mail.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men, accounting for one in four tumours. The disease mainly affects those over 50, and the risk rises with age. The prostate is a walnut-sized gland which lies underneath the bladder, surrounding the urethra (the tube that carries urine from the bladder).

Doctors have recently developed a technique for reducing the risk of this happening - using a small balloon - A balloon implanted in the body and then blown up could help lessen the side effects of treatment for prostate cancer. Treatment often involves radiotherapy to kill cancerous cells. During the procedure, high-energy X-ray beams are directed at the prostate. Unfortunately, radiotherapy can also damage healthy cells surrounding the gland.

In some cases, this damage is short-term - side-effects, including tiredness and diarrhoea, last only a few weeks or months. But in others the damage is more severe, leading to urinary incontinence, a loss of libido and in 30-to-50 per cent of patients an inability to maintain an erection.

Scientists believe the new treatment, known as the SpaceGuard Balloon, will reduce this risk as it is designed to create space around the prostate, pushing healthy tissue out of the radiotherapy's line of fire. The balloon is placed next to the prostate. It is then filled with fluid until about the size of a peach. This acts as a shield for the healthy tissue.

The device, on trial at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine in the U.S., and other centres, is implanted under a local anaesthetic. First, a tiny incision is made in the skin,and the folded and deflated balloon is inserted. A syringe is then used to inflate the balloon using saline solution.

The procedure takes around 30 minutes and can be done on an outpatient basis. The implant, developed by Israel-based BioProtect, is designed to dissolve after three to six months, the usual length of radiotherapy treatment for prostate cancer.
Researchers believe it will improve the safety and effectiveness of the therapy. It may also mean that the radiation dose can be increased, while damage to healthy tissue is reduced.

Dr Raj Persad, a urologist at the Bristol Royal Infirmary and Southmead Hospital, says: 'This new technology will enable clinicians to locate more precisely the exact tissue to target. 'Apart from reducing side-effects, it may also lead to a reduction in the amount of overall radiation the body receives. I look forward to seeing the results of the study.'