Cryoablation Is Focus of 17 Clinical Studies at American Urological Association Annu...(dies include: -- A wide-ranging revie...),Health

-- A wide-ranging review of the outcomes of cryoablation in 2,558 primary

prostate cancer patients showed efficacy of cryoablation in terms of

biochemical survival and low morbidity. The average age of the

patients, all part of the nationwide Cryo-On-Line Database (COLD)

Registry, was 70 years and 419 of the patients had more than five years

of follow-up.

-- A 10-year, retrospective review of 78 patients at the University of

Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center demonstrated the effectiveness of

cryoablation for prostate cancer patients whose cancer returned after

being originally treated with radiation. After 10 years, more than 80

percent of the patients were disease free after cryoablation and the

investigators concluded that salvage cryoablation is curative in

approximately one-third of patients at 10-year follow up.

-- The first, multi-center study of focal, or partial gland, cryoablation

for 341 prostate cancer patients demonstrated that more than half of

the patients who were potent before the therapy were again potent after

six months, and more than 74 percent resumed potency within 36 months.

Focal cryoablation is designed to destroy the tumors in the prostate

while sparing the nerves to retain potency. These patients are also

part of the COLD Registry.

-- An 88-patient Cleveland Clinic study of the long term disease-free

survival rates (more than five years) of kidney cancer patients showed

that laparoscopic kidney cryoablation is an effective treatment in

select patients. The investigators determined that cancer-specific

survival of 95 percent is possible at five years and 88 percent is

possible at 10 years.

-- Six AUA-sponsored courses and workshops related to cryoablation

focused on prostate ultrasound, abdomi
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