Aureon Laboratories has released Prostate Px, a test to predict prostate cancer regression and disease recurrence at the time of diagnosis. The technology combines molecular biomarkers, histological and clinical information with advanced mathematics, said Ricardo Mesa-Tejada, MD, vice president of pathology and medical director of Aureon Laboratories. More »
VIENNA—Image-guided intensity-modulated radiotherapy, high-intensity focused ultrasound, and cryotherapy are increasing the curative treatment options for men with prostate cancer. The problem is how to determine which patients are most suitable for these therapies. More »
The value of a molecular marker in cancer depends on whether its use will improve clinical outcomes. Studies on tumor biomarkers are in preliminary stages, and there is a “near total” absence of any papers examining the clinical implications of using markers, according to a speaker at the 2009 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium. More »
SAN FRANCISCO—Studies show improved outcomes when androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) is part of the care for men with intermediate-risk prostate cancer, said Mack Roach III, MD, taking the “pro” side of a debate on the issue. But “con” speaker Arul Mahadevan, MD, argued that the studies in question included mostly high-risk patients, and that monotherapy is effective in intermediate-risk patients. More »
Ferring Pharmaceuticals received approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for degarelix, a new injectable gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) receptor antagonist indicated for patients with advanced prostate cancer. More »
For men with locally advanced prostate cancer, the addition of radiation treatment to antiandrogen hormone therapy reduces the risk of dying of prostate cancer by 50% compared to those who have antiandrogen hormone treatment alone, according to a randomized study presented September 22, 2008, during the plenary session of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology’s 50th Annual Meeting in Boston. More »
Men over 70 years of age with early-stage prostate cancer have a 20% higher mortality if they are treated first with hormone therapy before being treated with radiation seed implants (brachytherapy), compared to men who are treated with brachytherapy alone, according to the largest cohort study of its kind presented September 23, 2008, at the 50th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology in Boston. More »
A combination of two antiangiogenic agents—bevacizumab (Avastin) and thalidomide (Thalomid)—with docetaxel (Taxotere) is associated with a median progression-free survival of about a year and a half among men with metastatic, hormone-refractory prostate cancer, finds a phase II trial presented at ASCO 2008 (abstract 5000). More »
Recently, third-generation cryosurgery has been widely introduced into clinical practice using argon-driven, ultrathin 17-gauge cryoprobes in accordance with the Joule-Thompson principle.[1-3] Contemporary cryosurgery includes these technologic advances along with the routine utilization of ultrathin needles incorporating a thermal monitoring system (TMS) for temperature surveillance, transrectal ultrasound (TRUS) imaging, and a urethral warming catheter to minimize morbidity associated with the... More »
This is an expertly written summary of the experience with cryotherapy as primary treatment of prostate cancer and the rationale for proceeding toward more limited, organ-sparing approaches with this procedure as focal treatment for low-risk cancers. Growing evidence of overdetection and overtreatment in many men with low-risk tumors has resulted in the recognition that alternatives to conventional treatment strategies are needed. Observation, a laudable and appropriate approach, appeals to... More »
