Results soon of phase two trials of new testosterone-lowering drug

BUSINESSWIRE: The results of phase 2 (there are three) trials of a new drug that reduces testosterone to castrate levels and serum free testosterone to levels lower than orchiectomy or LHRH analogs – without bone loss or hot flashes- are about to be reported in the US. READ MORE>

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Testosterone slow to return after years of hormone therapy for prostate cancer

URO TODAY: The recovery of testosterone after long-term androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer is slow, according to a study of about 20 patients who had been receiving hormone drugs for a mean seven years. READ MORE>

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NEW FIND: Prostate cancer may be caused by high-dose testosterone leaking from testes to prostate

URO TODAY: It’s very early days, but medical scientists in Israel may have made a new discovery about the cause of prostate cancer and subsequently how to treat it. READ MORE>

They believe that as men age, very highly concentrated testosterone leaks to the prostate gland via the testicular and prostate venous (blood) drainage systems.

They tried treating six men with an “interventional radiological procedure and super-selective intraprostatic androgen deprivation therapy” and in five cases achieved a decrease in prostate size and in PSA levels, with repeat biopsies showing disappearance of cancerous cells.

The work is being done at Maynei Hayeshua medical center and Department of Condensed Matter Physics, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.

At NEW PROSTATE CANCER INFOLINK, Mike Scott writes:

This is clearly a radical new finding that needs to be confirmed by other research groups.

Should it prove to be accurate, we may have a whole new mechanism available to treat early stage disease without having to expose patients to systemic forms of hormone therapy.

The “New” Prostate Cancer InfoLink emphasizes, however, that we have seen only an abstract of this report, and we need greater detail to understand what is actually being suggested by Gat and colleagues. READ MORE>

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False balls that release bone-loss drugs may make testicle removal viable option again

URO TODAY: Testicular prostheses that slow-release drugs to combat bone loss in men being treated for advanced prostate cancer, have the potential to restore testes removal as a viable option for testosterone control. READ MORE>

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Low – not high – levels of testosterone may be new culprit in prostate cancer

URO TODAY: High levels of testosterone have until recently been regarded as dangerous for prostate cancer patients, but new evidence is emerging that suggests something different. READ MORE>

Provocative new evidence suggests that it is not high serum testosterone that is problematic for prostate cancer, but low serum testosterone that is associated with worrisome cancer features and outcomes, such as high Gleason score, advanced stage of presentation, and increased risk of biochemical recurrence after surgery.

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John and Mary latest: No alternative now to chemo – but latest version would cost $5000 a dose

PROSTABLOG NZ: John has now moved to the stage of needing chemotherapy for his advanced prostate cancer, but the government-subsidised version in NZ has been surpassed by a more effective drug – at $5000 a dose. That’s way beyond Mary’s bank balance. READ MORE>

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New testosterone blocker for advanced prostate cancer shown to be effective with no side effects

URO TODAY: Swedish research shows a new treatment for advanced prostate cancer, the gonadotrophin-releasing hormone antagonist/receptor blocker Degarelix, is well tolerated, with no systemic allergic reactions. READ MORE>

This new agent represents an important pharmacological development in the hormonal treatment of prostate cancer.

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New drug dutasteride shown to be more effective than older variant (finasteride) in treating prostate cancer

URO TODAY: The dual inhibition of both types 1 and 2 of the testosterone-reducing enzyme 5-AR with the new drug dutasteride may prove more useful than another commonly used drug, finasteride, in treating prostate cancer. READ MORE>

A review just published by the Department of Urologic Sciences, University of British Columbia Vancouver says:

Normal growth and function of the prostate are contingent on the reduction of testosterone to dihydro-testosterone (DHT) by 5-alpha reductase (5-AR) enzymes types 1 and 2.

It has been theorised that an over-abundance of DHT may be implicated in the pathogenesis of both benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and prostate cancer.Dutasteride inhibits both types 1 and 2, whereas finasteride inhibits type 2 only.

Available data show that dutasteride, in contrast to finasteride, provides greater suppression of DHT than finasteride, is able to shrink tumour volume quicker and more dramatically than finasteride, and is more effective against genetic variants of 5-AR than is finasteride.

Thus, full clinical investigations of these and other approaches to the inhibition of 5-AR are ongoing and results are greatly anticipated.

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NZ politician Mike Lee tells how prostate cancer hit him at time of David Beckham debacle

JULY 12: SUNDAY STAR-TIMES:  Prominent Labour local body politician Mike Lee (59) revealed today he has “mid-range aggressive” prostate cancer and is undergoing external beam radiation and hormone therapy.

The Star-Times today reveals the story of how this hit him at a time when his position of chairman of the Auckland Regional Council was under severe pressure, following the organisation’s disastrous backing of a David Beckham soccer match in Auckland last year.  READ MORE>

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NZ docs too ‘scared’ to try some prostate cancer treatments with proven overseas records

JULY 10: PROSTABLOG NZ: “It’s sad that medical professionals in NZ are so scared of possible side effects from a treatment like Ketoconazole, that they refuse to even acknowledge it, even if it has been proven to be effective overseas.”

These words were written today by Mary – a Kiwi whose partner has advanced prostate cancer – as she describes the frustration of being unable to persuade NZ doctors to move outside what seem to her to be inflexible approaches to treatment.

“I produced prostate cancer digests from people I know who have had large drops in PSA on Keto, but I was told I know only a few people and trials showing side effects have been done on thousands,” she says.

“When I said I would like to see the papers on this, I was told I was not a doctor…and to this I respond “no, but I am the partner of a man with advanced cancer.”

READ the second chapter of Mary’s struggle to save her man.

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