New Prostate Cancer Scan ‘Is Going To Be Life-Saving,’ Doctor Says

>>> WERE BACK. >>> WERE BACK. 7:41, WITH A GROUNDBREAKING DEVELOPMENT THIS MORNING IN THE FIGHT AGAINST PROSTATE CANCER. >> YEAH, IT IS THE SECOND LEADING CAUSE OF CANCER DEATH IN MEN. ROUGHLY 1 IN 41 WILL DIE FROM THE DISEASE. 1 IN 8 WILL BE DIAGNOSED AT SOME POINT IN THEIR LIVES. ONE OF THE BIGGEST PROBLEMS WITH PROSTATE CANCER IS THAT SCANS USED RIGHT NOW OFTEN DONT SHOW THE FULL PICTURE WHERE THE CANCER HAS SPREAD. >> WELL THIS MORNING THE FDA GAVE APPROVAL TO A NEW TYPE OF SCAN THAT GIVES DOCTORS THE TOOL TO MORE ACCURATELY PINPOINT WHERE THE CANCER IS IN MAYBE TREAT IT BEFORE IT SPREADS FURTHER. DR. JOHN TORRES. IT IS IMPORTANT TO NOTE THIS IS A NEW SCAN NOT A TREATMENT. BUT WHAT IS THE IMPLICATION OF THAT. >> YOU ARE RIGHT. BUT IT IS A SCAN USED IN COB JUNCTION WITH TREATMENTS AND NEW TREATMENTS ARE COMING DOWN THE PIPELINE SO IT IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND WHERE THE CANCER MIGHT HAVE SPREAD. WITH PROSTATE CANCER, AROUND 250,000 MEN DEVELOP THIS EVERY YEAR. UNFORTUNATELY AROUND 34,000 DIE FROM IT AND IT IS NOT UNCOMMON FOR THEM TO GET THEIR PROST REMOVED THINKING EVERYTHING IS OKAY AND YEARS LATER THEY START GETTING HIGHER LEVELS OF PSA, MEANING DOCTORS KNOW ITS SPREAD SOMEWHERE. BUT WITH CURRENT IMAGING THEY CANT FIND BR WHERE IT ACTUALLY SPREAD TO. NOW WITH THIS NEW TECHNIQUE WHICH BASICALLY INVOLVES INJECTING A MOLECULE THAT CANNING THE INTEGER ON THE MEMBRANE OF THE PROSTATE CELL ITSELF, THEN THEY CAN FIND IT USING THE SCAN. IF THEY CAN FIND, THEY CAN MORE SUCCESSFULLY TREAT IT. THIS IS GOING TO BE LIFE SAVING. >> DR. TORRES — BACK IN NOVEMBER, HE HAD PROSTATE CANCER, FORTUNATELY THEY CAUGHT IT EARLY. BUT FOR MEN WHO ARENT AS FORTUNATE AND DOCTORS DONT CATCH IT AS EARLY, IT BECOMING MORE AGGRESSIVE, WHAT IS THIS GOING TO MEAN FOR THAT PARTICULAR CROUP? >> THIS IS A BIG ADVANCEMENT IN THEIR TREATMENT. LOT OF TIMES THEY DONT CATCH IT AND IT SPREADS TO OTHER PARTS OF THE BODY. AND THEN THEY PLAY A GUESSING GAME TRYING TO FIGURE WHERE IT WENT. BONE, L., OTHER PARTS OF THE BODY AND THEN THEY HAVE TO TAKE SCANS TO FIGURE WHERE IT IS. THE PROBLEM WITH THE SCANS IS THEY HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THE CANCER GETS BIG ENOUGH TO WHERE THEY CAN SEAT IT. WITH THIS B SCAN THEY DONT. THEY CAN DETECT SMALL AREAS OF THE PROSTATE CANCER SPREAD SOMEWHERE ELSE AND THEN THEY KNOW HOW TO TARGET IT AND TREAT IT OR AT LEAST THEY ARE GETTING TREATMENTS HERE THAT SHOULD HELP WITH THAT AND THEN WELL HAVE A BETTER IDEA HOW TO BASICALLY LET THEM SURVIVE THIS. >> SOUNDS LIKE GREAT TECHNOLOGY THAT THEY ARE USING FOR PROSTATE CANCER. AND I WAS JUST WONDERING CAN THAT KIND OF TECHNOLOGY BE USED FOR OTHER TYPES OF CANCERS LIKE BREAST CANCER? >> AND HODA WERE FINDING OUT MORE AND MORE ABOUT CANCERS AND SPECIFIC MOLECULES WE CAN USE TO DETECT CANCERS AND SO THIS SHOULD PROBABLY GIVE US AN IDEA OF HOW TO LOOK AT OTHER CANCERS AND SPECIFIC MOLECULES THAT MIGHT BE ON THAT CANCER CELL ITSELF AND HOW THEY CAN DETECT IT. SO THIS IS GOING TO BE A GAME CHANGER. IT IS GOING TO CERTAINLY MOVE SCIENCE FORWARD BUT CERTAINLY FOR MEN WHO HAVE PROSTATE CANS THAT HES SPREAD, THAT IS BIG ADVANCEMENT RIGHT NOW. >> BIG ADVANCEMENTS IN THE TECHNOLOGY ITSELF. AMAZING. SO AMAZING DR. TORRES IS GOING TO COME BACK THE THIRD HOUR OF “TODAY,” 9:00 AND INTRODUCE US TO SOMEONE WHO ACTUALLY IS THE