What is TUMT?
Transurethral Microwave Thermotherapy delivers controlled microwave energy into the prostate through a specialized urethral catheter, heating and reducing obstructing tissue while cooling protects the urethra itself. Our Prolieve® system pairs that thermotherapy with a proprietary balloon compression that dilates the prostatic channel during treatment — the combination is sometimes called thermodilatation.
The appeal is simplicity: roughly 45 minutes in the office under local anesthesia, then home. Many men avoid the post-procedure catheter that older microwave systems required.
Where TUMT fits today
We'll be straight with you: we almost never use TUMT anymore. We offer it, we've performed it for years — and the arrival of PAE made it close to obsolete in our practice. PAE accomplishes everything TUMT was trying to do — without an instrument in the urethra, on any size prostate, with results that actually last. TUMT survives on our menu for the rare man whose anatomy or health profile rules out every modern alternative; for everyone else, there is simply a better answer.
Recovery and what to expect
Expect urinary frequency, urgency, and mild burning for one to two weeks as the treated tissue settles. Symptom relief develops over several weeks. Durability is more modest than tissue-removing or embolization approaches, with higher re-treatment rates over five-plus years — a trade-off we'll walk through candidly against your goals.
TUMT vs. PAE — the head-to-head
You asked the right question — here is the same comparison we draw on the whiteboard in our consultation room, line by line.
| TUMT | PAE | |
|---|---|---|
| Route into the body | Microwave catheter through the urethra | Tiny groin access — urethra untouched |
| Treatment time | ~45 minutes of urethral catheter dwell | Catheter in an artery, removed at the end |
| Durability | Modest — higher re-treatment over 5+ yrs | Durable shrinkage |
| Prostate size treated | Smaller glands | Virtually any size |
| Recovery | Irritative symptoms 1–2 weeks | Essentially none |
Our verdict: TUMT was a reasonable answer a generation ago. Today we can't point to a single category where it beats PAE — not route, not durability, not gland size, not recovery. That's why, across our 1,000+ PAE cases, the men who once would have been TUMT candidates now get PAE, and our TUMTs per year can be counted on one hand.