AstraZeneca Offers CHOICES Prostate Education Program

WILMINGTON, Delaware—Astra-Zeneca has launched CHOICES, a comprehensive resource program for men with prostate cancer and their families. The program contains expert advice to help patients make informed treatment choices and real life messages from survivors, the company said in a news release.

The CHOICES packet consists of two videocassettes and a short educational booklet.

The first video, Understanding Your Choice, reviews the function of the prostate gland, explains how physicians diagnose prostate cancer, and details the four key treatment selections: surgery, radiation therapy, hormonal therapy, and close surveillance.

The second video, CHOICES We’ve Made, approaches the treatment alternatives through the experiences of four actual prostate cancer patients. Physicians, patients, and family members explain their roles in living with prostate cancer and how they came to their various treatment decisions.

“The CHOICES videos showed me how important my role is in prostate cancer treatment and how that choice can affect my life,” Robert Wilbert, a prostate cancer survivor from Detroit, said in the release. “Now I have a better understanding of the disease and the various therapies I can choose from. After reviewing the tapes with my family, we felt comfortable discussing what method would be best for me.”

CHOICES videos are available to prostate cancer patients through their physicians. Doctors will receive CHOICES materials through their AstraZeneca urology sales representatives.