I am being treated for T3aN0M0, i.e. cancer outside the prostate capsule, no evidence of lymph node involvement or seminal vesicle involvement or any cancer elsewhere (metastases) . I live in France. I have been offered 8 weeks of image guided External Beam Radiation Therapy to the pelvic area (seminal vesicles and lymph glands) as well as the prostate. I am already on hormone therapy. I have had a second opinion from a Sheffield based oncologist while I am visiting family. The Sheffield oncologist thought that what my French oncologist proposed was within the normal regimes. He did say that he would probably focus on the prostate and not treat the pelvic area and would probably do 4 weeks of radiotherapy. But he said the evidence for one regime compared to the other probably was not sufficient to make a choice. He thought the French protocol was reasonable as there is variation even within the UK and thought the French protocol would be as likely to work as any found in the UK.
Any thoughts as to the benefits of 4 versus 8 weeks of therapy? Other than the convenience (I am retired and live 20 minutes by car from the oncology department, so no big deal).