Advantages and disadvantages of embolization for the treatment of prostatic hypertrophy

The article is professionally consulted by Master, Doctor Vu Huy Hoang - Radiologist - Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine - Vinmec Times City International General Hospital.

Prostate enlargement, also known as prostatic hyperplasia, prostate enlargement, benign prostatic hyperplasia,... This is a condition in which the prostate gland is enlarged, pressing on the urethra and bladder, causing urinary disorders and can lead to complications such as urinary tract infections or impaired kidney function,...
In recent years, laparoscopic surgery to remove part or completely Prostate cancer is not widely applied. The reason is that this technique has many potential risks of complications such as: Anesthesia, often blood transfusions when bleeding, goat surgery patients have retrograde ejaculation (difficulty having children naturally), some people have to urinate. incontinence,... Other treatment methods such as laser burning, high frequency waves,... are less invasive and give good results, but they are expensive and can still have similar complications.
Embolization is a minimally invasive treatment that can stop the growth and weaken the tumor by restricting its blood supply (using embolization material). When these materials are injected into the blood vessels that feed the prostate fibroid, they become blocked. Since then, the source of nutrients to the tumor is reduced, the tumor will be smaller. With this prostate cancer treatment technique, symptoms such as urinary retention, nocturia, frequent urination, ... will be significantly reduced.

2.1 Indications The larger the prostate fibroid, the easier it is to perform embolization. The application of embolization technique is usually done when:
The size of the fibroid is 25 - 30g; There are many severe clinical symptoms: urinary retention, nocturia, polyuria, urinary incontinence, ... affecting quality of life, 6 months of medical treatment but no improvement or patients do not want to take drugs for a long time ; The patient does not want surgery; The patient is contraindicated to surgery for prostate cancer due to comorbidities such as coagulopathy. In case of prostate enlargement without symptoms or mild symptoms that do not affect life, embolization or surgery should not be performed.
2.2 Contraindications Do not perform prostate embolization if:
The patient has serious infectious diseases; Patients with severe liver or kidney failure; Patients with diabetes mellitus, hemophilia; Patients with a history of bronchial asthma; The patient has a history of allergy to iodine-containing products.

3.1 Advantages Angioplasty for prostate cancer treatment has many advantages such as:
Less bleeding; Shorten the use of bladder catheters; Significantly shorten the time of treatment and hospital stay. Usually, patients only need to stay in the hospital for 1 day after surgery to be able to leave the hospital; Does not affect ejaculatory function, does not cause retrograde ejaculation or urethral stricture; Can be applied to patients with contraindications to surgical intervention. 3.2 Cons The patient must lie motionless for 6-8 hours after the procedure; The technique is difficult to perform because men with prostate enlargement are often older, the blood vessels may have been atherosclerotic, the lumen of the vessel has narrowed, so it is difficult to insert the catheter correctly; Potential risks: Infection, damage to arteries, bleeding in the pelvis, PAV microspheres go to the wrong place and damage healthy tissues, the body reacts to the embolization material. Besides, prostate cancer is a chronic disease that progresses over time. Therefore, after applying the embolization method, the remaining prostate continues to proliferate and grow even faster than before. Besides, the majority of people with prostate cancer are middle-aged and elderly, so the ability to recover after intervention is lower than that of young people. Therefore, careful consideration should be given before performing embolization for prostate enlargement.

Vinmec is the first private hospital in Vietnam to provide a comprehensive model of examination and treatment of urological diseases with modern examination/screening methods.
With this model, Vinmec has transformed from the traditional surgical/treatment model to a comprehensive surgical/treatment model that integrates minimally invasive methods, bringing a positive change in the treatment of patients. Treatment of prostate diseases, including:
Robotic surgery for prostate cancer Treatment of prostate enlargement with a Bipolar bipolar knife Biopsy to detect prostate cancer by special methods, withdrawal of prostate cancer shorten the time and increase the biopsy efficiency. Any questions that need to be answered by a specialist doctor as well as customers wishing to be examined and treated at Vinmec International General Hospital, please register for an online examination on the Website for the best service.