Radical steam treatment offers prostate hope

A RADICAL new steam treatment could offer hope to thousands of middleaged men who suffer with an enlarged prostate.

The five-minute procedure to shrink the gland cuts the need for surgery and comes with minimal side effects.

It is thought as many as half of all men over the age of 50, and 60% of those over 60, are affected by an enlarged prostate.

The problem commonly causes repetitive night-time visits to the bathroom, but many men find that, having rushed out of bed, they cannot urinate after all.

The new treatment – which involves injecting an enlarged prostate with jets of steam – avoids the severe impacts of invasive operations that can often spell an early end to a man’s sex life.

An enlarged prostate is not linked to cancer and does not increase the risk of getting prostate cancer – yet the symptoms can be similar, so most men with the condition are tested to make sure their prostate is not cancerous.

It is caused by benign prostatic hyperplasia, in which an overgrown prostate presses into the bladder and blocks the urethra, the vessel through which it empties.

In extreme cases, men find they cannot urinate, leading to a build-up of toxins that can cause severe kidney problems. The vast majority with the condition avoid surgery because of fears over side effects.

While the operation – called transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) – is effective, it can lead to loss of sexual function, bleeding and incontinence.

The steam treatment, called Rezum, simply shrinks the prostate with few side effects and is performed under local anaesthetic and sedation.

Surgeons at the Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in London and Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust have trialled the procedure on 150 men, with remarkable results.

Professor Hashim Ahmed and Professor Richard Hindley of Hampshire Hospitals, who performed the first Rezum procedure last year, found that, on average, their patients’ prostates shrank by 36% – a comparable result to TURP. But remarkably, the side effects have been minimal.

Professor Ahmed said: ‘We have seen zero incontinence and virtually zero impotence.’

Health watchdogs are expected to give it the green light for routine use throughout the UK tomorrow, with medics here expected to be looking closely at the developments for their prostate patients.