AVENTURA, Fla. — Burley Brewton was able to count on a new advancement in targeted therapy after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, the second most common cancer in men.

Brewton, 66, who is among the more than 300,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer in the U.S. this year, benefited from focal therapy, which destroys cancer cells without damaging surrounding nerves and tissue.

Dr. Utsav Bansal, a urologic oncologist with the Memorial Health System, treated Brewton with the NanoKnife System, a treatment that uses needles to deliver high-voltage electrical pulses.

“The reason I chose the NanoKnife is because I wanted to keep my sexual function intact,” Brewton said.

Bansal said it also preserves urinary function. Burley, a retired teacher, said it took about two weeks for him to recover after the treatment.

“I am feeling good ... I really feel like myself, and I’m glad I got this treatment,” Burley said.

The treatment was an option because of early detection. One in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, so annual exams are vital and should include a Prostate-Specific Antigen, or PSA, test at 50 and younger if there is a family history.

“It’s not a death sentence if you catch it early,” Burley said. “I am going to keep preaching it ... You have to get yourself checked.”

Bansal said studies showed that more than 70% of men who underwent treatment with the NanoKnife procedure had no detectable prostate cancer a year after treatment.

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