General

Recent epidemiologic evidence suggests that higher circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D does not protect against prostate cancer and, in fact, may increase the risk of developing this malignancy. However, few studies have examined the most clinically relevant outcome, prostate cancer mortality. This study showed in a population of men diagnosed with prostate cancer, higher serum 25(OH)D years prior to diagnosis was associated with longer prostate cancer survival. Read the article.

The association between obesity and aggressive forms of prostate cancer is controversial. A study compared preoperative body mass index (BMI) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels as predictive risk factors for increased prostate weight and disease aggressiveness. Higher BMI was associated with higher prostate weight and PSA, as well as with higher pT stage and pathologic GS in men undergoing radical prostatectomy, providing further evidence that obese men are more likely to have aggressive cancer. BMI thus constitutes an additional risk factor besides PSA. Read the article.

The American age-adjusted incidence rate for prostate cancer peaked in 1992 at 237.4 per 100,000 men with the advent of widespread PSA screening and has been falling fast ever since. The age-adjusted mortality rate for prostate cancer peaked in 1993 — just a year after the incidence rate did — at 39.3 per 100,000 men. Explanations for the decline in the mortality rate range from improvements in treatment to American men having healthier diets. Advocates of screening say early detection has also had a hand in bending the mortality-rate curve. Read the article.

Howard Wolinsky a journalist based in the Chicago area, was diagnosed with early prostate cancer in 2010. In part one of a series he described his diagnosis and his decision to chose active surveillance. In the second part, he shared his experience during 5 years of active surveillance and in this part he tells his continuing quest to make the best — and most informed — decision about his care. Howard Wolinsky decides it may all be in the genes. Read the article.

Most people would agree that it would be better to prevent cancer, if we could, than to treat it once it developed. Yet economic incentives encourage researchers to focus on treatment rather than prevention. Read the article.

New research suggests that age, race and family history are the biggest risk factors for a man to develop prostate cancer, although high blood pressure, high cholesterol, vitamin D deficiency, inflammation of prostate, and vasectomy also add to the risk. In contrast, obesity, alcohol abuse, and smoking show a negative association with the disease. Details are reported in the International Journal of Medical Engineering and Informatics. Read the article.

Men who have an orgasm a day are lowering their risk of developing prostate cancer. A study has revealed that those men who ejaculate more often during their lifetime have a 22% lower risk of getting the disease. The study doesn’t give any reasons why the practice of ejaculation may help to stave off prostate cancer, but there are theories which have been made public previously. It has been thought that ejaculation can rid the prostate of cancer-causing chemicals, while there are also theories that if sperm is ‘cleaned out’ in this manner it can stop a build-up of old

New research has revealed that five different types of prostate cancer exist. World renowned robotic prostate cancer surgeon, Dr. David Samadi says this discovery may change the outlook of prostate cancer screening. “Discovering five different types of the disease could change how they’re distinguished from one another and may even mean different treatments for each, targeted to the individual patient,” said Dr. Samadi, Chairman of Urology and Chief of Robotic Surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Read the article.

Scientists at the UW Carbone Cancer Center are in human trial phase for a vaccine to treat aggressive forms of prostate cancer. Scientists say this vaccine, combined with another drug, will help the body target prostate cancer cells. “We believe this vaccine has the potential to train a patient who has prostate cancer, to train their immune system to recognize the tumors that are growing as foreign and to begin to clear them and remove them from the body,” said Dr. Richard Lesniewski, the president and CEO of Madison Vaccines. Read the article.