The hormone therapy for prostate cancer has a basic goal. The hormone therapy aims at the reduction of the male hormone level in the body. This male hormone is known as androgen. In the male biological system testosterone is the chief source of androgens and testosterone provides stimulation to the prostate cancer cells and they keep on regenerating.

Now hormone therapy works for reducing the androgen level of the body, so that cancer cells stop getting further stimulation for growth. Once the patient achieves a lower level of androgen in the body, the growth of the cancer cells are considerably curbed. Thus, hormone therapy helps obstruct the growth of prostate cancer, but it does not claim to cure the disease.

Even if hormone therapy can not completely eradicate prostate cancer, it comes to great help in particular situations.

?Hormone therapy is administered in the cases, where the patient is unable to undergo surgery or radiation therapy. Hormone therapy also helps to control the prostate cancer symptoms in the cases, where the other approaches have failed to bring result and in cases where cancer has already spread beyond the prostate gland.

?In cases where, it was not possible to eradicate the entire cancer through surgery or radiation or in cases where cancer comes back after those treatments.

?Some patients are at high risk for cancer recurrence. In that case, hormone therapy is used along with the other treatments.

?In many cases, hormone therapy is used to arrest the growth of the disease prior to other treatments to make them more effective.

There are mainly two types of hormone therapy for prostate cancer:

Orchiectomy and Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) analogs.

The Orchiectomy procedure involves removal of the testicles, the major source of androgens, especially testosterone. With the source removed, the growth of cancer considerably checked. This is the simplest and cheapest method of reducing androgen levels in the body. It is the permanent method for reducing androgen too. Many men opt for silicon testes following the operation.

The LHRH analogs are costlier procedure, yet most of the men prefer this method over orchiectomy. It also requires more frequent doctor visits. This method involves the application of drugs that lower testosterone levels by decreasing the androgens made by the testicles. LHRH analogs are injected as small implants under the skin either once in a month or every 3, 4, 6, or 12 months.

The researchers are however divided in their opinion with regard to the start and stoppage of this treatment. A group of physicians is of the opinion: hormone therapy is more effective when it is administered as soon as the cancer has reached an advanced stage even though the patient feels well.

Others are however of the opinion that treatment should not be started until other procedure fails, otherwise the cancer may develop resistance to the therapy sooner.

The researches regarding hormone therapy is still in progress and it will be too early to conclude anything at this stage. Whatever may be the mode, the hormone therapy has been proved to be an excellent solution for keeping the cancer growth in check.