Interstitial brachytherapy should be standard of care for treatment of high-risk prostate cancer

High-risk prostate cancer represents a therapeutic challenge for both the urologist and radiation oncologist. Biochemical outcomes with radical prostatectomy and external-beam radiation therapy are poor in this subset of patients. These unfavorable results have led some to believe that high-risk prostate cancer is not curable with conventional treatment approaches, which has been an impetus for many of the current trials using neoadjuvant chemotherapy and prostatectomy. With the established efficacy of interstitial brachytherapy, these efforts are likely excessive. Most modern trials indicate excellent biochemical control rates among high-risk patients treated with an aggressive locoregional approach that includes brachytherapy. A thoughtful review of the literature would suggest that interstitial brachytherapy offers a therapeutic advantage over other local treatment modalities and should be considered standard treatment for aggressive organ-confined prostate cancer.