Practice guideline 'Prostate cancer: diagnosis and treatment']

--A national, multidisciplinary practice guideline was developed concerning diagnosis and treatment of patients with prostate cancer. Because of the lack of sufficient scientific evidence at this moment no practice guideline on screening is included. --The diagnosis of prostate cancer is made by transrectal ultrasound-guided prostate biopsies. The Gleason score is used for histological grading. --In localized prostate cancer and comorbidity 'active surveillance' is advised if the life expectancy is < 10 years. In healthy patients radical prostatectomy, external and internal radiotherapy are equivalent treatment options. The final decision is made after the patient has received adequate counselling. --In locally advanced prostate cancer in a patient with a life expectancy > or = 10 years external beam radiotherapy is the preferred treatment whether or not in combination with hormonal therapy. --In locally recurring prostate cancer following radical prostatectomy and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) < 1.0 ng/ml salvage radiotherapy can be advised. Recurrence following external beam radiotherapy may be treated by salvage radical prostatectomy or brachytherapy in selected cases. --In metastatic prostate cancer androgen deprivation therapy is advised, i.e. surgical castration, luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) analogues, or parenteral estrogens. --In hormone resistant prostate cancer palliative treatment of painful metastases is advised, e.g. painkillers, local radiotherapy, or radionuclides. The role of docetaxel-based chemotherapy should be discussed. --During follow-up PSA is determined; digital rectal examination and imaging are performed whenever indicated.