What happens if my PSA rises after I have completed my radiation therapy?
Academic Title: Assistant Professor
Board Certifications:
Radiation Oncology
If your PSA rises after radiation therapy, it is first important to determine if this is due to a cancer recurrence or due to simple fluctuation in PSA levels that can occur as the prostate responds to radiation therapy.
If your PSA rises enough to suggest that prostate cancer may have recurred, then your doctor may perform a biopsy of the prostate gland to see if cancer has returned in the prostate gland, as well as a bone scan and CT scan to be sure that cancer has not spread outside of the prostate gland.
Depending on the findings of these studies, your doctor may recommend that you receive hormonal therapy to lower your testosterone or that you receive “salvage” local treatment to the prostate gland, such as prostatectomy, cryotherapy, high-frequency ultrasound (HIFU) or prostate seed implant.
All of these considerations should be discussed with your prostate cancer specialists if your PSA rises. This is a complex situation that is best discussed with a multidisciplinary team of prostate cancer specialists.