Less is more in the case of this cancer treatment.
The most common form of cancer among men in the US, after skin cancer, prostate cancer often comes with traditional treatments that cause difficult side effects.
Now, a recent study may have found a potentially easier, less disruptive and more effective way to treat the second leading cause of male cancer deaths.
Depending on how aggressive the cancer is, treatments can range from just monitoring — which can delay treatment — to surgically removing the entire prostate or using radiation therapy to destroy the cancerous cells.
The downsides of the standard five doses of radiotherapy, though, include potential rectal and bladder issues, an increased risk of bladder and colon cancer, delayed inflammation and hemorrhagic cystitis and proctitis.
But research presented at the Congress of the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO 2026) says that two larger radiation doses cause no additional side effects.
The HERMES study split up 46 prostate cancer patients into two treatment groups.
One group had 24 patients who received five doses spread out over two weeks, while the other 22 were treated with the equivalent overall dose, but in two sessions over eight days.
Using the same MRI-guided technology for both treatments, the team found that condensing the radiotherapy into two sessions was not only safe and achievable but also had no impact on adverse effects.
While one in four patients still experienced urinary side effects, like increased frequency or urgency, there were no severe urinary or bowel effects in either group, according to the researchers.
And the minimal differences in side effects experienced held up two years after treatment.
“After two years, our patients reported minimal change in their quality of life,” Dr Sian Cooper said in a press release.
This discovery comes as a breakthrough for cancer therapy, as the multiple treatments over a longer period that were once conventional can now be delivered in a way that’s more beneficial for the patient in a multitude of ways.
Not only is the two-dose radiation method just as effective and comes with no additional side effects, but it could also have a positive effect on other aspects of the patient’s treatment.
“Limiting treatment to two doses is more convenient for patients, who would need fewer hospital visits, making it easier for those who live far from radiotherapy centers to complete their treatment,” ESTRO President, Professor Matthias Guckenberger, who was not involved in the research, said in a press release.
“It can also reduce the associated costs for hospitals and treatment centers,” Guckenberger added.
Other treatments, like focal therapy that involves freezing and destroying the area where aggressive cancer is on the gland, are still relatively new.
The HERMES study also used a state-of-the-art machine that combines an MRI scanner with a radiotherapy machine for precision to target the prostate while protecting surrounding healthy tissue.
And while this technology is currently only available in a few specialist centers around the world, they are becoming more common, which can allow for updates to prostate cancer treatment.
“These results can help guide how they are used and help us understand whether two-session radiotherapy should become a new standard of care,” Guckenberger said.
