Secondary malignancies following radiotherapy for prostate cancer

Human exposure to sources of radiation as well as the use of radiation-derived therapeutic and diagnostic modalities for medical reasons has been ongoing for the last 60 years or so. The carcinogenetic effect of radiation either due to accidental exposure or use of radiation for the treatment of cancer has been undoubtedly proven during the last decades. The role of radiation therapy in the treatment of patients with prostate cancer is constantly increasing as less-invasive treatment modalities are sought for the management of this widely, prevalent disease. Moreover the wide adoption of screening for prostate cancer has led to a decrease in the average age that patients are diagnosed with prostate cancer. Screening has also resulted in the diagnosis of low-grade, less-aggressive prostate cancers which would probably never lead to complications or death from the disease. Radiotherapy for prostate cancer has been linked to the late occurrence of second malignancies both in the true pelvis and outside the targeted area due to low-dose radiation scatter. Secondary malignancies following prostate irradiation include predominantly bladder cancer and, to a lesser extent, colon cancer. Those secondary radiation-induced bladder tumors are usually aggressive and sometimes lethal. Care should be given to the long-term follow up of patients under radiation therapy for prostate cancer, while the indications for its use in certain cases should be reconsidered.