Bottom Line:

After nearly nine years of follow-up, men with early-stage prostate cancer who received higher doses of radiation were less likely than men who received the conventional dose to have rising levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA)"”a phenomenon referred to as "biochemical recurrence" that may predict actual recurrence 15 years or more in the future.

Publication details:

This is a news item reporting the findings of a phase III trial that men with early-stage prostate cancer who receive higher doses of radiation were half as likely to see their cancer return in five years as men who received the conventional dose.

We assessed this page using an appraisal instrument developed by Minervation specifically for this project. This approach is still in development, so you should regard the assessments as a general guide. Click here to find out more, or to let us know how you think the approach could be improved.

Reliability comments:

• Cannot tell if the page has been checked by an expert.
• Cannot tell when the page was last updated.
• The page cites some links to relevant sources.
• The site does not report a quality control or content production policy.
• However, most of the pages are clearly prepared with care and based on literature searching and appraisal.

Usability comments:

• The format is clear and appropriate for the audience.
• The website does not conform to web accessibility standards

Scoring

Date rated

Sep 08

Source

National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Currency

Inadequate

Audience

Professionals

Publication Type

Summary

Format

Web page

Reliability

Usability