[Clinical investigations on prostatic carcinoma patients who survived for long periods]

A clinical investigation was conducted on 15 prostatic carcinoma patients who survived for more than 3 years (as of October, 1984) since the initial examination. The patient's age at first examination ranged from 56 to 84 years, and survival time was from 3 to 8 years. There was no correlation between age at first examination and survival time. No statistically significant relationship was found between the initial examination stage and survival time. However, the Stage D group showed a wide-ranging survival time from the shortest to the longest survival time. In the relationship between stage and grade, as cited above, group D reflected multiple aspects of prostatic carcinoma in the broad spectrum observed from Grade 1 to Grade 3. The performance status of the 15 prostatic carcinoma patients was either Grade 0 or 1 at the initial examination. The group classified in Grade 0 at the time of the first examination displayed a more favorable performance status than the Grade 1 group now (P less than 0.05). Regarding the stage variation, 1 patient showed improvement, 12 showed none, and 2 reflected advance of the disease. It is important that radical surgery be indicated in any operable case, and in the inoperable cases long-term control therapy is required.