UroToday- High provider volume has been correlated with improved outcomes for a variety of therapies, including surgical management of genitourinary malignancies. In the online version of European Urology, Dr. Jeldres and investigators report on the outcomes of 3,907 patients treated with radiotherapy (XRT) for prostate cancer (CaP) and stratified by provider volume.

Patients studied were treated between 1989 and 2000 in Canada by a total of 72 radiation oncologists. Those receiving androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) prior to or within one year of XRT were not included in the study. The cumulative provider volume ranged form 1 to 347 cases. The average annual volume ranged form 1 to 39 cases with a median of 10 cases. Median followup was 6.2 years. Secondary therapy was ADT in 586 (15%), bilateral orchiectomy alone in 42 (1.1%), and both in 103 (2.6%). The estimated survival probabilities at 5 and 10 years after XRT were 79.5% and 61.3%, respectively.

Using an annual treatment volume of >10, the 10-year event-free survival was 63.8% compared to 58.6% for