Costly prostate therapy common when docs own the machine

By Gene Emery NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – A new study of an intensive and expensive form of prostate cancer therapy finds that doctors who stand to profit from the treatment are twice as likely to recommend it, even though there is no definitive evidence that it is better. The treatment, known as intensity-modulated radiation therapy or IMRT, typically costs more than $31,000 while options costing about half that – or less – are available. For instance, there is little evidence that it helps patients live longer, said the study’s author, Jean Mitchell of Georgetown University in Washington, D. …