Purpose: To find the factors which influence the acute increment of International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) after transperineal permanent interstitial implant (TPI) using (125)I seeds.
Patients and methods: From April 2004 through September 2006, 104 patients with nonmetastatic prostate cancer underwent TPI without external-beam irradiation. Median patient age was 70 years with a median follow-up of 13.0 months. 73 patients (70%) received neoadjuvant hormone therapy. The increment of IPSS was defined as the difference between pre- and postimplant maximal IPSS. Clinical, treatment, and dosimetric parameters evaluated included age, initial prostate-specific antigen, Gleason Score, neoadjuvant hormone therapy, initial IPSS, post-TPI prostatic volume, number of implanted seeds, prostate V(100), V(150), D(90), urethral D(max), and urethral D(90). In order to further evaluate detailed urethral doses, the base and apical urethra were defined and the dosimetric parameters were calculated.
Results: The IPSS peaked 3 months after TPI and returned to baseline at 12-15 months. Multivariate analysis demonstrated a statistically significant correlation of post-TPI prostatic volume, number of implanted seeds, and the dosimetric parameters of the base urethra with IPSS increment.
Conclusion: The base urethra appears to be susceptible to radiation and the increased dose to this region deteriorates IPSS. It remains unclear whether the base urethral dose relates to the incidence of late urinary morbidities.