Radical Prostatectomy in Treating Patients With Locally Advanced Prostate Cancer

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

* Histologically confirmed adenocarcinoma of the prostate

  * Unilateral cT3a, cN0, M0
* Well or moderately differentiated tumor

  * Gleason score no greater than 7 (4 plus 3 or 3 plus 4)
* Total serum prostate-specific antigen no greater than 20 ng/mL (Hybritech equivalent)

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Age:

* 70 and under

Performance status:

* WHO 0-1

Life expectancy:

* Not specified

Hematopoietic:

* WBC greater than 3,000/mm\^3
* Platelet count greater than 100,000/mm\^3
* Hemoglobin greater than 9 g/dL

Hepatic:

* Bilirubin no greater than 1.5 times normal
* ALT or AST less than 3 times normal
* PT and PTT normal

Renal:

* Creatinine no greater than 1.5 mg/dL

Cardiovascular:

* No preexisting uncontrolled cardiac disease, signs of cardiac failure, or rhythm disturbances requiring therapy
* No myocardial infarction within the past 6 months

Pulmonary:

* No gross abnormalities on chest x-ray

Other:

* No other disease that would preclude surgery
* No other prior malignancy except adequately treated basal cell skin cancer
* No other concurrent primary malignancy
* No psychological, familial, sociological, or geographical condition that would preclude compliance

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Biologic therapy:

* Not specified

Chemotherapy:

* Not specified

Endocrine therapy:

* No prior hormonal therapy that would affect assessment of clinical T staging, margin positivity, or definitive pT staging

Radiotherapy:

* No prior pelvic radiotherapy that would affect surgical resectability and perioperative morbidity

Surgery:

* No prior surgery in the small pelvis (vascular surgery, mesh graft hernia repair, any surgery for benign prostatic hypertrophy, or transurethral resection of prostate) that would preclude prostatectomy