Editorial comment on: insignificant prostate cancer and active surveillance: from definition to clinical implications. Eur Urol 2009;55:1331

An increasing number of comparatively young men are diagnosed today with prostate cancer in an apparently early stage. Most studies that have examined the natural course of early stage prostate cancer have come to the same conclusion: The course of the disease is fairly indolent for the first 15 yr, but after that, a considerable increase in prostate cancer mortality is seen [1]. This pattern has been seen as a reason for men with a very long life expectancy to undergo immediate curative therapy, even when diagnosed with early stage prostate cancer. Recently, the need for immediate treatment of all young men has been challenged, and the concept of active monitoring has gained popularity as a treatment policy. The idea is tha