Do results of surgical treatment of cancer clinically localized to the prostate justify early screening

: Prostate cancer is the most common malignancy and represents the second leading cause of cancer death in men of western countries. Mortality of this tumor is particularly high beyond ten years. For patients with more than 10 years of life expectancy, curative treatment, if available, is mandatory. For the others, observation and differed hormonal palliative treatment is a reasonable alternative. Radical prostatectomy is the gold standard for treatment of clinically localized prostatic cancer. Cure rate is very high when the tumor histologically is strictly confined to the prostate. Morbidity has been reduced with the development of the anatomical approach. Our experience suggests that this reduced morbidity can also be achieved in urology clinics with relatively low recruitment. In addition, our results show that chances for cure are still very high for tumors reaching or even penetrating the prostatic capsule, as long as the seminal vesicles are not invaded. Early screening of the Prostate diagnoses a vast majority of tumors before the stage of seminal vesicle invasion. Early screening may thus be recommended for patients with 10 years or more of life expectancy.