How treatable is prostate cancer? A doctor reacts to Biden's diagnosis

[ad_1] <img src="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F6c%2F32%2F8317d271444d9120c01f7392a4a0%2Fgettyimages-2192193538.jpg" data-template="https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/6000x4000+0+0/resize/{width}/quality/{quality}/format/{format}/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F6c%2F32%2F8317d271444d9120c01f7392a4a0%2Fgettyimages-2192193538.jpg" class="img" alt="Then-President Joe Biden speaks at a White House ceremony." fetchpriority="high"/> Then-President Joe Biden, pictured throughout a White Home ceremony in January 2025, has been recognized with what his workplace calls an "aggressive type" of prostate most cancers. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Photographs cover caption

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Photographs Former President Joe Biden's workplace introduced Sunday that he has been recognized with an "aggressive" type of prostate most cancers, which has unfold to his bones. Nevertheless it mentioned the most cancers seems to be hormone-sensitive, "which permits for efficient administration."

Prostate most cancers is the most typical most cancers amongst males within the U.S. after pores and skin most cancers, and might usually be handled efficiently, based on the American Most cancers Society.

It has an general five-year survival fee of 97%, although that quantity is decrease — 37% — in instances the place the most cancers has unfold to different components of the physique.

Dr. Ben Davies, a professor of urology on the College of Pittsburgh Faculty of Medication, advised NPR's Morning Version that Biden "has a really unhealthy model of it, most likely the worst model you may get."

The commonest grading system for prostate most cancers is named the Gleason rating, which includes learning tissues below a microscope to evaluate how rapidly the most cancers cells can develop (small, intently packed cells get decrease grades). Scores vary from 6 to 10, with these of 8 or above handled as high-risk cancers.

Biden's workplace says he has a Gleason rating of 9.

Whereas Davies does not know the precise extent of Biden's situation, he says there are some good choices in entrance of the previous president.

These embody hormonal therapies, like injections, to suppress the testosterone ranges in his physique in order that the most cancers "stops rising fairly as quick and might virtually soften away from the bones."

That is also paired with chemotherapy, which is often used solely in superior prostate most cancers. A 3rd possibility is radiation remedy, which Davies says "has been confirmed to increase life in sufferers with newly recognized metastatic prostate most cancers."

"It isn't all doom and gloom, to be sincere," Davies mentioned. "He can simply reside 10 years with this illness."

Biden's workplace says he's reviewing therapy choices along with his medical doctors. Davies says Biden's age, 82, does not essentially restrict what's on the desk.

"It is not likely an age-specific factor," he says. "It is extra the physiology, and the way he can take the therapies that he is getting."

He did be aware that sure potential medicines may "enhance a few of the frailty features of life." Biden's bodily and psychological health has been the topic of intense scrutiny throughout and since his time in workplace, with questions in regards to the former president's age and well-being finally forcing him to desert his 2024 reelection bid.

In his first public feedback on Monday, through which he thanked individuals for his or her help, Biden wrote that "most cancers touches us all."

"Like so a lot of you, Jill and I've realized that we're strongest within the damaged locations," he tweeted, alongside a selfie of the couple and their cat.

How widespread is prostate most cancers? The American Most cancers Society (ACS) estimates there will likely be about 313,780 new instances of prostate most cancers within the U.S. in 2025, and about 35,770 deaths.

In a press release, it mentioned Biden's prognosis is a "reminder in regards to the tragic affect of prostate most cancers within the US, the place about one in eight males will likely be recognized over their lifetime."

"Though it's a extremely survivable illness when caught in early levels, it's the second main explanation for most cancers dying in males," it added.

The ACS says whereas the prostate most cancers dying fee decreased by about half from 1993 to 2022, its decline has slowed lately — doubtless reflecting an increase in cancers discovered at a later stage.

In the meantime, it says, the variety of instances recognized every year has elevated by 3% every year since 2014.

Who's in danger and what can they do about it? Threat components for prostate most cancers embody age, race and household historical past. It develops extra usually in Black males and Caribbean males of African ancestry than these of different races and is normally seen after age 50. The ACS says about 6 in 10 prostate cancers are present in males over age 65.

Screening for prostate most cancers usually includes a blood take a look at and a digital rectal examination, and pointers fluctuate for when males ought to discuss to their physician about it.

The ACS recommends age 50 if they're at common danger, 45 if they're at excessive danger and 40 if they've multiple first-degree relative who had prostate most cancers at an early age.

The U.S. Preventive Companies Job Pressure recommends males aged 55 to 69 get screened for prostate most cancers, and most males older than that ought to not get screened routinely.

Davies says that is partly as a result of most prostate cancers discovered at that age are indolent: rising slowly and never inflicting appreciable ache.

"When you screened a inhabitants of sufferers for prostate most cancers of their 80s, you'd be … including unwarranted fear to these sufferers," he mentioned. "So I'd discuss to your main care doctor about what it means to be screened, the pluses and minuses."

The place does most cancers analysis stand? Davies says analysis has allowed for important advances in diagnosing and treating prostate most cancers over the previous decade.

"We have made main beneficial properties in prostate most cancers care within the metastatic house over the previous 10 years and actually prolonged life," he says.

Biden himself has lengthy been a champion within the struggle in opposition to most cancers, which was private for him years earlier than his personal prognosis: His son Beau died of mind most cancers in 2015.

As vice chairman, Biden led the Most cancers Moonshot initiative, which introduced federal sources collectively to speed up progress in most cancers analysis to "get rid of most cancers as we all know it," aiming to cut back the most cancers dying fee by at the least 50% inside 25 years. He relaunched this system as president in 2022, with the purpose of "making a decade's price of progress in most cancers prevention, prognosis, and therapy in 5 years."

The Trump administration, then again, has stifled federal funding for scientific analysis by means of funding freezes, rule modifications and job cuts — which researchers say is hampering the struggle in opposition to most cancers and different illnesses.

A report launched final week by the Senate Well being, Training, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee discovered that the White Home reduce most cancers analysis by 31% within the first three months of this yr, in comparison with the identical time-frame in 2024.

"We are going to solely make headway into prostate most cancers care with cautious and strong funding of our science establishments, which I am actually hoping will proceed," Davies mentioned. "And that may pave the way in which for future individuals who get the illness the president has."