Abstracts by key term: Watchful waiting
HAROW is a study in the field of urological health services research and at the same time the largest study on localized prostate cancer (PCa) in Germany. The name is derived from the first letters of the treatment options applicable to PCa, hormone therapy, active surveillance, radiotherapy, surgery and watchful waiting. HAROW documents the course of the different therapy strategies under everyday conditions. It records medical progress data, information on communication between doctor and patient, side effects and therapy acceptance as well as the costs of treatment under everyday conditions. The special feature is that, for the first time in Germany, defensive strategies such as active surveillance and watchful waiting are included in the treatment comparison. The aim is to record the distribution across the different treatment arms, the resource consumption and benefits as well as the acceptance of the therapies under everyday conditions. The following article presents the concept and structure of the study and shares some of the results evaluated.