For decades, quality of life (QoL) outcomes have been documented in the literature and incorporated into decision making in the therapy of localized prostate cancer. Until recently, there was less attention placed on researching the QoL impacts of medicines for patients with advanced illness, probably due to fewer therapy alternatives. For a review, researchers described the most recent evidence on QoL outcomes for prostate cancer therapies in various disease scenarios.
Recent results showed that men who get local treatment for prostate cancer have inferior early QoL in sexual, urinary, and bowel function domains compared to men who chose observation, however, it has been seen that the effects become less disparate over time. More effective treatment often delays the worsening of several elements of QoL as measured by patient-reported outcomes in those patients undergoing systemic therapy for advanced prostate cancer.
While there are several treatment options for both localized and metastatic prostate cancer, different therapy techniques have variable effects on the QoL. Clinicians can combine adverse effect profiles and impacts on patient-reported outcomes characterizing QoL to assist patients with prostate cancer as they make treatment decisions for prostate cancer, particularly in contexts where there is a paucity of head-to-head effectiveness evidence comparing treatment alternatives.
Reference:link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11934-019-0924-2
