Currently as our advanced prostate cancer progresses and we develop bone and soft tissue tumors our pain increases significantly. Current treatment options for the palliation of this pain includes painkillers (including opioids and methadone), radiation and in rare incidents surgery. All of these options have significant limitations.
Drugs eventually become less effective, especially for breakout pain and we are limited to the amount of and the timing of radiation to control the tumor growth.
First-of-its-kind research showed that it might be possible to use microwave ablation (MWA) therapy to control pain. This research showed that it is possible to cut pain in half for patients with painful bone and soft-tissue tumors as well as taking less time to complete than alternative treatment options. In the study pain relief lasted over 4 months on average and up to 15 months in some of the subject patients. Results of this study were reported at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Pain Medicine.