Prostate Cancer - Latest Research Reports

Prostate Cancer - Latest Research Reports

Edited by Jonathan Kantrowitz

Published by Tsadek Press

Copyright 2014 Jonathan Kantrowitz

8.5 x 11, 114 pages

$10.95


2 Tsadek Press books $19.95
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Description:

This book offers a fascinating, and possibly, life-saving , review of the latest research on avoiding prostate cancer, treating prostate cancer, and surviving prostate cancer. There is also similar information on bladder cancer.

The table of contents tells the complete story:

Table of Contents

Introduction                                                 

Avoiding Prostate Cancer                           

Increased Prostate Cancer Risk                

Screening for Prostate Cancer                  

Watchful Waiting                                        

Chemotherapy                                             

Gene Therapy                                              

Hormone Therapy                                       

Supplemental Therapies

            Aspirin                                              

            Coffee                                                           

            Statins                                                          

            Diet and Exercise                            

Radiation                                                      

Surgery                                                         

Prostate Cancer Survivorship                    

Last Minute Additions – Latest Research

Appendix- Bladder Cancer                         

Increased Risk Of Bladder Cancer

            Fighting Bladder Cancer                

Treatment For Bladder Cancer 

  Sample articles: 

   

Aspirin reduces risk of prostate cancer mortality

Experimental evidence suggests that anticoagulants (ACs) may inhibit cancer growth and metastasis, but clinical data have been limited. This studyinvestigated whether use of ACs was associated with the risk of death from prostate cancer.

This study, published online Aug. 27, 2012 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology., comprised 5,955 men in the Cancer of the Prostate Strategic Urologic Research Endeavor database with localized adenocarcinoma of the prostate treated with radical prostatectomy (RP) or radiotherapy (RT). Of them, 2,175 (37%) were receiving ACs (warfarin, clopidogrel, enoxaparin, and/or aspirin). The risk of prostate cancer-specific mortality (PCSM) was compared between the AC and non-AC groups.

AC therapy, particularly aspirin, was associated with a reduced risk of PCSM in men treated with RT or RP for prostate cancer. The association was most prominent in patients with high-risk disease.

Aspirin reduces the risk of cancer recurrence in prostate cancer patients

Some studies have shown that blood-thinning medications, such as aspirin, can reduce biochemical failure––cancer recurrence that is detected by a rising prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level––the risk of metastasis and even death in localized prostate cancer. These studies, although very telling, have all emphasized the need for more data. Now, with researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center having concluded the largest study on this topic, and there is substantial data suggesting that aspirin improves outcomes in prostate cancer patients who have received radiotherapy.

A team led by Mark Buyyounouski, M.D., M.S., a radiation oncologist at Fox Chase, examined a database of over 2000 prostate cancer patients who underwent radiotherapy at Fox Chase between 1989 and 2006 and found that aspirin use lowers the risk of cancer recurrence. The scientists presented their findings on Sunday, May 1, 2011 at the 93rd Annual Meeting of the American Radium Society.

The team found that the 761 men who took aspirin at or after the time of radiotherapy were less likely to experience biochemical failure––as indicated by the levels of PSA––than were the 1380 men who didn't take the drug.

After 10-years from completion of treatment, 31% of the men who took aspirin developed recurrence compared with 39% of non-aspirin users (p=0.0005). There was also a 2% improvement in 10-year prostate cancer related survival associated with aspirin use with a trend toward statistical significance (p=0.07). "We know that prostate cancer has a long natural history and 15 years or more may be necessary to detect significant difference in survival," Dr. Buyyounouski explains. "Longer follow-up is needed, but these results warrant further study."

The readily available drug could be a promising supplement to radiotherapy in prostate cancer patients, and its beneficial effects may generalize to other types of cancer, Buyyounouski says. Still, he cautions that "it's a little premature to say that men need to start taking aspirin if they have a history of prostate cancer."

The optimal dose, timing, and duration of aspirin therapy, as well as potential side effects are not well understood, Buyyounouski explains. It's not clear how exactly the aspirin is helping and more research is needed to investigate this. "Its possible aspirin therapy is making the radiation more effective or preventing the cancer from spreading".

Coffee

Four or more cups of coffee a day may keep prostate cancer recurrence and progression away

Coffee consumption is associated with a lower risk of prostate cancer recurrence and progression, according to a new study by Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center scientists in Cancer Causes & Control.

Corresponding author Janet L. Stanford, Ph.D., co-director of the Program in Prostate Cancer Research in the Fred Hutch Public Health Sciences Division, conducted the study to determine whether the bioactive compounds in coffee and tea may prevent prostate cancer recurrence and delay progression of the disease.

Stanford and colleagues found that men who drank four or more cups of coffee per day experienced a 59 percent reduced risk of prostate cancer recurrence and/or progression as compared to those who drank only one or fewer cups per week.

They did not, however, find an association between coffee drinking and reduced mortality from prostate cancer, although the study included too few men who died of prostate cancer to address that issue separately.

First study to assess the link between tea and prostate cancer outcomes

Regarding tea consumption, the researchers did not find an associated reduction of prostate cancer recurrence and/or progression. The study also did not draw any conclusions regarding the impact of tea drinking on prostate-specific death.

“To our knowledge, our study is the first to investigate the potential association between tea consumption and prostate cancer outcomes,” the authors wrote. “It is important to note, however, that few patients in our cohort were regular tea drinkers and the highest category of tea consumption was one or more cups per day. The association should be investigated in future studies that have access to larger populations with higher levels of tea consumption.”

The population-based study involved 1,001 prostate cancer survivors, aged 35-74 years old at the time of diagnosis between 2002-2005, who were residents of King County, Wash. Participants answered questions regarding their diet and beverage consumption two years prior to prostate cancer diagnosis using a validated food frequency questionnaire, and were interviewed about demographic and lifestyle information, family history of cancer, medication use and prostate cancer screening history.

The researchers followed up with patients more than five years after diagnosis to ascertain whether the prostate cancer had recurred and/or progressed. Those who were still living, willing to be contacted and had been diagnosed with non-metastatic cancer were included in the follow-up effort.

Of the original 1,001 patients in the cohort, 630 answered questions regarding coffee intake, fit the follow-up criteria and were included in the final analysis. Of those, 61 percent of the men consumed at least one cup of coffee per day and 12 percent consumed the highest amount: four or more cups per day.

The study also evaluated daily coffee consumption in relation to prostate cancer-specific death in 894 patients using data from the initial food frequency questionnaire. After the median follow-up period of eight-and-a-half years, 125 of the men had died, including 38 specifically from prostate cancer. Daily coffee consumption was not associated with prostate cancer-specific mortality or other-cause mortality, but with few deaths these analyses were limited.

“Our study differs from previous ones because we used a composite definition of prostate cancer recurrence/progression,” said first author Milan Geybels, a doctoral student at Maastricht University in the Netherlands who was a graduate student in Stanford’s Prostate Studies group at Fred Hutch when the study was conducted. “We used detailed information on follow-up prostate-specific antigen levels, use of secondary treatment for prostate cancer and data from scans and biopsies to assess occurrence of metastases and cause-specific mortality during follow up. Using these detailed data, we could determine whether a patient had evidence of prostate cancer recurrence or progression.”

The results are consistent with findings from Harvard’s Health Professionals Follow-up Study, which found that men who drank six or more cups of coffee per day had a 60 percent decreased risk of metastatic/lethal prostate cancer as compared to coffee abstainers.

Further research is required to understand the mechanisms underlying the results of the study, but biological activities associated with consumption of phytochemical compounds found in coffee include anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects and modulation of glucose metabolism. These naturally occurring compounds include:

Caffeine, which has properties that inhibit cell growth and encourage apoptosis, or programmed cell death. Previous studies have found that caffeine consumption may reduce the risk of several cancer types, including basal-cell carcinoma, glioma (a cancer of the brain and central nervous system) and ovarian cancer.

Additional studies needed to confirm whether coffee can prevent cancer recurrence

The researchers emphasize that coffee or specific coffee components cannot be recommended for secondary prevention of prostate cancer before the preventive effect has been demonstrated in a randomized clinical trial. Further, there’s ongoing debate about which components in coffee are anti-carcinogenic, and additional large, prospective studies are needed to confirm whether coffee intake is beneficial for secondary prevention.

Coffee drinking may even be problematic for some men, Geybels said.

“Although coffee is a commonly consumed beverage, we have to point out that increasing one’s coffee intake may be harmful for some men. For instance, men with hypertension may be vulnerable to the adverse effects of caffeine in coffee. Or, specific components in coffee may raise serum cholesterol levels, posing a possible threat to coronary health. Patients who have questions or concerns about their coffee intake should discuss them with their general practitioner,” he said.