Dr. Chris Teigland and Dr. John Mahoney have been working together since 1995 to treat patients with advanced prostate cancer. A medical oncologist, Dr. Mahoney served as the Chief of Hematology-Oncology, Department of Internal Medicine at Carolinas Medical Center from 1995 - 1999. He also served as the Co-Director of the Prostate Cancer Clinic at CMC's Blumenthal Cancer Center from 1995 - 2001. Currently, Dr. Mahoney is a member of Carolinas Hematology-Oncology Associates.

Prostate cancer develops as a three-stage disease process with different treatment approaches for each stage of development. Dr. Teigland administers and manages the patient's care through the first two stages of the prostate cancer disease process. In the first stage, many patients present with potentially curable disease. These patients are treated with one or more forms of definitive local therapy, including radical prostatectomy (surgical removal of the prostate), radiation therapy, or a combination of radiation therapy and hormone therapy. Local therapies such as these are usually successful, completely curing the patient of prostate cancer.

In some patients, however, prostate cancer recurs. If so, hormone therapy is usually the next treatment approach. Most patients respond to hormone therapy and experience a regression in their prostate cancer for a period of time. The length of time varies, depending on the aggressiveness of the disease. In many patients, however, the prostate cancer becomes resistant to hormone treatment.

When a patient's prostate cancer becomes refractory to hormone therapy, Dr. Teigland continues to follow the patient and refers the patient to Dr. Mahoney for additional treatment. In the past, there were no treatment options for hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Today, chemotherapy and experimental therapies are showing promise in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer and other genitourinary cancers. In fact, 30 - 40 percent of Dr. Mahoney's practice is devoted to treating cancer of the genitourinary system (prostate, bladder, and kidneys). Prostate cancer is the single-most common cancer that Dr. Mahoney treats. Accordingly, Dr. Mahoney and Dr. Teigland collaborate on numerous clinical research protocols to offer eligible patients every available option for treating advanced prostate cancer. Such clinical research has led to numerous treatment advancements in recent years, extending the life expectancy of patients with advanced prostate cancer.