as far as when the cancer is gone it may take 18-24 months for the radiation to clear the cancer from your prostate gland. the psa should go down to a very low number. the best results are when the psa goes to less than 0. 2ng/ml. certainly if the psa does not fall to below 0. 5ng/ml by 2 years this may mean the brachytherapy did not work completely. if your psa does not drop to these low levels you may need another prostate biopsy but this should not generally be done until after 18-24 months. there is also something called "psa bounce" where the psa can temporarily bump up after brachytherapy. this is important because if this happens in the first 2 years you should not worry about cancer returning right away and wait out the psa bounce and usually it falls back down. in general. brachytherapy is a good choice for men in their 70's. .
i am 74 years old and underwent brachytherapy for my prostate cancer. how will i know when the prostate cancer is gone?