Spaceoar hydrogel

Men with prostate cancer are faced with a tough decision in choosing between surgery and radiation. Not all men are candidates for surgery, and many men who otherwise could have surgery are (very reasonably) concerned about having prolonged urinary leakage or losing their erections afterwards. 

External prostate radiation is a well established form of prostate cancer treatment and can be given either as a shorter treatment course with 5 treatments over two weeks (called SBRT or Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy) or the more traditional five week daily course (called IMRT or Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy of Radiation).

While external radiation does carry a lower risk of erectile dysfunction and incontinence, it can predispose men to lasting rectal/bowel issues due to the close proximity of the prostate to the rectum and the small amount of overlapping radiation. 

To help minimize this risk, Dr. Ebel now offers a rectal spacing procedure called SpaceOAR. This involves injecting a temporary and absorbable hydrogel between the rectum and the prostate and has been shown to dramatically reduce the severe bowel side effects of radiation. This procedure can be performed simultaneously with your fiducial marker (targeting bead) placement.

Making the right prostate cancer choice is difficult, if you are interested in prostate radiation and think that SpaceOAR may help you, please reach out to my team and schedule an appointment today. 

Contact us to set up an appointment today at Dr. Ebel's Findlay, Ohio based practice.