After Treatment Followup

After treatment is completed, follow-up appointments will be scheduled so that your radiation oncologist can make sure your recovery is proceeding normally. You may also be asked to make follow up appointments with your Urologist and/or Medical Oncologist, as these team members may also be following you after your treatments.

The goal of the initial follow up visits after completing radiation are to ensure the proper management of any acute side effects you’ve experienced during or shortly after the treatment. Additionally, your radiation oncologist may set you up with additional tests to determine how well the radiation worked and if other treatments are necessary.

One of the most important tests that are used to monitor your prostate cancer after radiation treatment is the prostate specific antigen (PSA) test. This test is often ordered sometime after completion of your treatment to understand how your cancer has reacted to the radiation. Sometimes, the expected PSA trend can be complex, so please discuss the role of PSA measurements and the expected outcome with your doctor.

Other tests that your radiation oncologist, together with other members of your treatment team, may order include additional diagnostic tests such as CT scans, MRIs or PET scans. Reports on your treatment may be sent to the other doctors helping to treat your cancer.

Continued follow-up in the radiation oncology clinic is often recommended for several years after treatment completion. During this time, your Radiation Oncologist will evaluate for long-term side effects of radiation therapy and to ensure that the cancer does not return. As time goes by, the number of times you need to visit your radiation oncologist throughout the year will decrease. However, you should know that your radiation oncology team will always be available should you need to speak to someone about your treatment.