The Gleason 6
The Gleason 3+3=6 prostate “cancer”, although called a cancer, fails to behave like a cancer. The Gleason 6 is the most commonly diagnosed prostate “cancer” and, on both clinical and molecular biology levels, the Gleason 6 “cancer” LACKS the hallmarks of a cancer.
The Gleason 6 “cancer” is NOT a healthrisk, lacks lethal potential, behaves as a pseudocancer and, is commonly treated unnecessarily creating much more harm than good. Even the concept of “active surveillance” for the Gleason 6 requires review as this term implies that the 6 may behave as cancerous when it does not. http://www.cancernetwork.com/prostate-cancer/active-surveillance-not-only-reduces-morbidity-it-saves-lives
The charade of prostate cancer awareness month
September is a very dangerous month for men as they are more likely than at any other time of the year to become ensnared by the falsehoods, misrepresentations and fearmongering of predatory urologists embarking on widespread indiscriminate and opportunistic PSA-based prostate cancer screening. A selfserving and misguided “awareness” program which detects mainly the Gleason 6 “cancer” form of prostate cancer. A disease where urologists have chosen to retain the misleading cancer label to imply that the 6 has, or, may develop malignant potential similar to the less common highgrade prostate cancers when that is patently untrue. Compounding this exploitation of medical illiteracy by urologists and railroading men into getting “treatments” which have no meaningful benefits for the Gleason 6 pseudocancer, are the considerable risks and negative quality of life issues which you will live with the rest of your life. https://urologyweb.com/robotic-prostate-cancer-surgery-a-public-health-nightmare/
Beware PSA-based screening and debilitating “treatments”
Various sources have warned about the dangers surrounding PSA-based prostate cancer screening programs and its debilitating treatments time and time again. From noted physicians like A. Horan MD (How to Avoid the Overdiagnosis and Overtreatment of Prostate Cancer) and Otis Brawley MD (Chief Medical Officer of the American Red Cross); the endless lawsuits filed against surgeons and the device manufacturer because of the many complications associated with the robotic prostatectomy; the scores of selfreported harms listed on the FDA’s own product safety system, MAUDE (Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience) representing only about 8% of actual adverse events; the warnings issued by the USPSTF (U.S. Preventive Services Task Force), a Government oversight agency to, the robot device makers themselves who clearly recognize the dangers associated with the robotic prostatectomy as their device disclaimers are getting longer with each revision. In essence, the treatment harms outweigh any benefits and, are commonly worse than the disease itself.
Grade creep and the evolution of Gleason 6 grading and scoring
In 1978, the American Cancer Society recognized the Gleason scoring system where the primary and secondary prostate cancer grades were arbitrarily scored 15 under the low power microscope and then these two grades added to create a Gleason score. Most prostate cancers were diagnosed as the Gleason 3 (1 out of 5 primary pattern) + 3 (1 out of 5 secondary pattern) = 6. In 2005, Gleason scores of 5 or less were no longer considered carcinoma and, by redefining certain pathological features previously assigned to the Gleason pattern 3, were now assigned to patterns 4 or 5. This arbitrary reclassification has resulted in an upgrading and an increase in the Gleason 7s category (3+4 and 4+3). In effect, today’s Gleason 3+4=7 is similar to yesterday’s Gleason 6. In fact, despite this arbitrary redefining of certain pattern features previously assigned to the Gleason 3 pattern, it is quite evident that the Gleason 3+4=7 BEHAVES like the NON healthrisk Gleason 6. This fact is especially important in light of the misleading talk of possible upgrading which can be seen at times in those unfortunate enough to have been subjected to the toxic robotic prostatectomy. Most of these socalled upgrades involving the 6 however, are to the Gleason 3+4 which behaves as the Gleason 6 pseudocancer and, simply reflect the randomness of prostate needle biopsies and the observer error seen with pathologists. https://urologyweb.com/wp-content/uploads/BEWARE-BEWARE-FDA-_APPROVED_-ROBOTIC-PROSTATECTOMY-CARE-1.pdf
Decreasing prostate cancer treatment risks and improving benefits
Soon, the mpMRI imaging of the prostate (in experienced hands) will be refined enough to be able to detect and diagnose just the meaningful high-grade prostate cancers, dispense with the risky, random prostate needle biopsy, the subjectivity issues and observer errors associated with pathologists and, stop all the unnecessary treatments of the Gleason 6 pseudocancer employing the scientifically unproven robotic prostatectomy. Only the less common but important highgrade prostate cancers will be detected and then treated as an outpatient using MRI-guided focal HIFU or laser therapy at the same sitting.
Finally, The Gleason 6 disease has very questionable significance and the detection and treatment of the Gleason 6 should be severely curtailed in order to stop the terrible consequences of debilitating treatments such as the robotic prostatectomy. The gross generalization and marketing of the allinclusive prostate cancer label to infer that all prostate cancers have lethal potential or, could progress to become lethal, is a flagrant lie. Only, the less common high-grade prostate cancers are potentially lethal and, greater than 50% of men dying from high-grade prostate cancer are diagnosed at age 75 years or older. Therefore, the best awareness you could practice in order to preserve your health and quality of life is to stay away from self-serving PSA-based screening programs as well as those misinformed patients fooled into believing they are survivors. They are simply survivors of a “treatment” and not their Gleason 6 which never was a real cancer.