Prostate drug debate: What’s it worth to stay alive a few more months?

WASHINGTON EXAMINER.COM:  Here’s a well-written article on the current US debate about how much a life is worth – more specifically, how much the government Medicare scheme and health insurers pay out for cancer drugs that prolong life for a few months. READ MORE>

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New review looks at best options for managing prostate cancer

NEW PROSTATE CANCER INFOLINK: Is there an optimal management for localised prostate cancer?, a new review by Singh et al., has just been published online in a new journal called Clinical Interventions in Aging.

The article appears to provide a thorough, sound, and neutral introductory review to all of the major management options. READ MORE>

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Prostatectomy gives ‘far better’ cure rate for prostate cancer than radiation or hormone treatment

URO TODAY: Prostatectomy gives a far better survival rate for prostate cancer than radiation or hormone therapy, a new study found. READ MORE>

Prostatectomy for localised prostate cancer was associated with a significant and substantial reduction in mortality relative to radiation therapy and androgen-deprivation monotherapy.

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Swedish study: active surveillance of prostate cancer leads to more deaths than getting treatment

URO TODAY: Men who choose watchful waiting after diagnosis of prostate cancer face higher risk of death from the disease than those who choose treatment, a Swedish study of nearly 7000 men has shown. READ MORE>

After adjustment for risk category, co-morbidity, and socio-economic status, there was a lower risk of prostate cancer-specific death in the radical prostatectomy and radiotherapy groups compared to active surveillance.

Overall and regardless of treatment strategy, the risk of prostate cancer-specific death at 8.2 years after diagnosis for all 6849 patients was 17%.

Death from competing causes was 17.6% for the active surveillance group, 6.8% for the radical prostatectomy group and 10.9% for the radio therapy group.

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US doctors reluctant to use proven anti-prostate cancer drug

LA TIMES:  Most physicians are reluctant to prescribe the drug finasteride to prevent prostate cancer in older men with elevated risk of the disease, despite evidence that the drug can reduce risk by about a quarter. READ MORE>

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Deciding treatment for ‘older’ prostate cancer patients should have little to do with age

URO TODAY: Older prostate cancer patients should be treated according to their health, not age, says an international panel of geriatric oncology specialists. READ MORE>

The panel calls for a revamp of international guidelines and says for this purpose older men – the average age of prostate cancer patients is 68 – can be divided into four groups:

• “Healthy” patients (controlled co-morbidity, fully independent in daily living activities, no malnutrition) should get the same treatment as younger patients.
• “Vulnerable” patients (reversible impairment) should get standard treatment after medical intervention.
• “Frail” patients (irreversible impairment) should have adapted treatment.
• “Terminal” patients should have symptomatic palliative treatment.

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Disgraced birth-deformity drug may help treat prostate cancer

JOHNS HOPKINS: Thalidomide may play a role in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer, according to a new study reported in The Journal of Urology. READ MORE>

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