Calgary’s Prostate Cancer Centre’s Rapid Access Active Surveillance Clinic.

In Alberta, one in seven men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime – 400 men die annually. The Prostate Cancer Centre’s Active Surveillance Clinic closely follows carefully selected men with screen detected low risk cancer in the hopes of avoiding or delaying invasive treatment for prostate cancer. As part of the men’s surveillance, this clinic also facilitates the collection of biological samples that will allow a prospective tumor bank to evaluate current and new biomarkers and genetic factors for prostate disease.

• Advanced prostate cancer is incurable. In 2017, seven men on average will die every week in Alberta from prostate cancer.
• Although potentially life-threatening, prostate cancer is extremely curable or treatable if caught early.
• Not all prostate cancer needs treatment but to date there is no way to determine what prostate cancer tumors will progress rapidly and which ones are slow growing and not life threatening.
• Patients are presented the standard of care options for management of localized prostate cancer including radiation therapy, cryotherapy, and radical prostatectomy. The Active Surveillance Clinic is a clinic for men with stage T1c prostate cancer who visit the urology clinic and do not opt for treatment.
• If they chose to monitor their prostate cancer with active surveillance, we will encourage them to enroll in the Active Surveillance Clinic. Enrolled patients will be followed at 6 month intervals. We propose to evaluate the clinical diagnostic and prognostic accuracy of new and existing biomarkers* for prostate cancer.
• This project will help give cancer patients peace of mind knowing that even though they have prostate cancer, it is low grade and curative intervention will not have to happen if the cancer does not grow. This will stop over treating patients who may live a long life with non-invasive cancer. The patient may avoid the side effects of curative intervention that can diminish quality of life.

Dr. Eric Hyndman is the urologist running the Active Surveillance Clinic and associated research. He is a staff Urologist at the Rockyview Hospital and an Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary.

Calgary’s Prostate Cancer Centre is a non-profit organization that aspires to excellence in prostate cancer education, diagnosis, treatment, awareness and research. We are located in the Southern Alberta Institute of Urology at the Rockyview General Hospital

• Annually, there are over 18,000 patient and family visits to the Prostate Cancer Centre to access medically sound information, diagnosis and treatment options and to receive support from volunteers who have experienced prostate disease.
• The Centre is a revolutionary made-in-Calgary success story unique in North America, funded entirely through the generosity of donors and sponsors.

*(A biomarker is a biological molecule found in blood, other body fluids, or tissues that is a sign of a normal or abnormal process, or of a condition or disease. A biomarker may be used to see how well the body responds to a treatment for a disease or condition. A biomarker may also be called a molecular marker and signature molecule. NCI Dictionary)

For media inquiries, contact:
Pam Heard – Executive Director or
Prostate Cancer Centre
Phone: (403)943-8868 cell: (403)815-3679)