Research Profile: Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia

May 6, 2009 -- Fox Chase Cancer Center is an internationally recognized leader in the treatment of prostate cancer. The center's nationally ranked doctors provide a wide range of treatment options.

The treatment plans delivered at Fox Chase are tailored for each patient. Some of the treatments offered are robotic-assisted laparoscopic (da Vinci) or open nerve-sparing surgery, intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) delivered by one of the nation's most experienced radiation oncology teams, state-of-the-art brachytherapy, and the most advanced prostate cancer chemotherapy and hormone therapy provided by our experts in medical oncology.

Fox Chase also designs and conducts investigational studies (clinical trials) of medicines and technologies for various stages of prostate cancer, giving patients the most options for treatment. For patients with prostate cancer, the center offers clinical trials using IMRT to reduce erectile dysfunction and studies examining different ways of administering hormone therapy.

In addition to treating prostate cancer, Fox Chase has a Prostate Cancer Risk Assessment Program (PRAP). This program offers education, risk assessment, screening, and an opportunity to participate in innovative prostate cancer research. This unique program is designed for men ages 35-69 who have increased risk of prostate cancer because of family history -- a father, brother, or son with prostate cancer -- or because they are African American, with or without a family history of prostate cancer.