The Case for External Beam Radiotherapy of Certain Adenocarcinomas of the Prostate

The surgeons tell us that a first principle for the resection of a neoplasm intended to effect a cure is the total excision of all malignant tissue. A corollary would dictate that the burden in morbidity or mortality, or the risk-benefit ratio, should not be excessive. Similarly, a first principle of radiation therapy dictates that the neoplastic cells must be either destroyed or rendered incapable of further replication by adequate irradiation, and damage to normal structure and function must be minimal.