Dr Phillip Stricker

St Vincent's Prostate Cancer Centre, as Chaired by Dr Phillip Stricker, is one of five international sites to engage in a study to assess the pentafecta. The pentafecta is a new concept used to report outcomes of minimally invasive robotic surgery and was championed by Vip Patel.

Traditionally surgeons viewed robotic surgery outcomes in terms of the trifecta – cure, continence and potency. However, the pentafecta encompasses two post surgery outcomes – lack of complications and negative surgical margins; that is the absence of cancer in the edges of the removed tumour.

Safe and accurate biopsies are essential to the management of prostate cancer. Whilst the transrectal biopsy is more common in Australia, transperineal biopsy potentially has a lower risk of infection rate and better detection of anterior-based tumours. As a leader in the care of men with prostate cancer and a world initiator of the transperineal technique, Dr Stricker has analysed safety outcomes and detection rates in the transperineal technique with comparison against a USANZ audit of the transrectal technique and a large international series. The findings indicate that the transperineal biopsy is safer and more accurate.

Set to expand the wealth of knowledge and further pioneer the care and treatment of men with prostate cancer, Dr Stricker is this year engaging in a new clinical trial. Having commenced in early 2012 the trial focuses on low risk prostate cancers and the role of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).

Open to all men with low risk prostate cancers who are engaged in active surveillance, the result will add more scientific information to assist patients in choosing the most appropriate treatment. In particular, the trial will focus on the way in which active surveillance and MRI are used to assess the size and progression of the cancer as well as to minimise the number of biopsies.

It is anticipated that the results of the clinical trial will be available in two years.