Acute bowel morbidity after prostate brachytherapy with cesium-131

Purpose: The present study evaluates the severity and time to resolution of bowel symptoms in men undergoing prostate brachytherapy (PB) with cesium-131 ((131)Cs).

Methods and materials: A longitudinal, prospective study of patients who had undergone PB with (131)Cs at a single institution was performed. All patients were asked to complete the Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite preoperatively and at 2 weeks and 1, 3, and 6 months postoperatively. Outcomes were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Student's t test.

Results: The first 142 patients to have undergone PB with (131)Cs at our institution were included in the study. The mean Expanded Prostate Cancer Index Composite bowel summary score at baseline was 90.1±11.0 compared with 71.5±22.8 (p=0.000), 70.1±20.7, 87.1±13.8 (p=0.01), and 90.7±9.2 (p=0.70) at 2 weeks and 1, 3, and 6 months postoperatively, respectively.

Conclusions: In men undergoing PB as monotherapy with (131)Cs, bowel symptoms returned to baseline by 3 months after the procedure. For patients undergoing PB with (131)Cs as part of combination therapy, bowel symptoms return to their post-external beam radiotherapy, pre-PB baseline by 3 months after the procedure.