Table 3.

Taxonomy of Likes and Dislikes for Treatment of Localized Prostate Cancer

Axis I: external information

Categories

Evidence or “track record”of treatment for cure, prevention of tumor spread

Recommendations: physician, family, other sources

Likelihood of side effects: incontinence, impotence, other

Axis II: intrinsic characteristics of the treatment

Categories

Removal: tumor vs prostate

Target of treatment: focused vs diffuse

Duration of treatment: brief vs long

Promptness of treatment effect: rapid vs slow

Anatomic extent of procedure: limited vs extensive/invasive

Length of recovery: short vs long

Possibility of future treatment options: open vs precluded

Axis III: personal impressions

Categories

General preferences

Global patient concerns

Previous treatment experiences: patient or others

Axis IV: economic concerns

Categories

Insurance: covered vs noncovered treatment

Loss of income

Travel expense