Prostate Cancer

PHILADELPHIA--The burgeoning support group movement has much to offer patients with prostate cancer. Professionals who wish to refer patients to a support group, or to start their own group, should be aware of the several types of groups that

PHILADELPHIA--Ongoing trials of a protocol that provides prolonged exposure to estramustine phosphate (Emcyt) and paclitaxel (Taxol) have produced promising results in men with hormone-refractory prostate cancer, Gary Hudes, MD, told Oncology News International.

CHICAGO--Proponents of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test have new ammunition to support the view that the controversial screening method accurately predicts the progression of prostate cancer and the long-term survival of patients,

NEW YORK--Finasteride (Pros-car), currently FDA approved for use in patients with symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), is also being investigated as a prostate cancer treatment and is showing promise as an agent to prevent prostate cancer by reducing levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), Glenn J. Gormley, MD, PhD, said at the first International Conference on Cancer Prevention.

PHILADELPHIA--Pain from skeletal metastasis has a major impact on quality of life in patients with prostate cancer, Mary Layman-Goldstein, RN, OCN, said at the American Cancer Society's National Conference on Prostate Cancer. Ms. Layman-Goldstein, a clinical nurse specialist at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, served on a panel discussion on how to manage complications of prostate cancer.

NEW YORK--Transrectal ultrasound is a valuable tool in the diagnosis of prostate cancer, but much can be done to optimize the procedure. W. Holt Sanders, MD, assistant professor of urology, Emory University School of Medicine, says that the basic principle is to "make sure the area of interest is within the focal range."

PHILADELPHIA--Urinary incontinence probably occurs as a complication of radical prostatectomy more often than series reported in the literature suggest, said Jerry G. Blaivas, MD, in a panel discussion of complications of prostate cancer held at the American Cancer Society's National Conference on Prostate Cancer.

CHICAGO--DNA ploidy in needle biopsy specimens is proving to be a highly accurate method of predicting local and distant spread of prostate cancer, as well as the probability of recurrence, Matthew Rifkin, MD, reported at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.

NEW YORK--Although it has revolutionized the early detection of prostate cancer, PSA testing can, and must, be improved to become the powerful tool needed in the fight against this disease, H. Ballentine Carter, MD, said at a conference on prostate cancer at Lenox Hill Hospital.

NEW YORK--Initial enthusiasm accompanying the introduction of laparoscopy in the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer has given way to a more realistic assessment of its value, R. Ernest Sosa, MD, said at a conference on prostate cancer at Lenox Hill Hospital. It continues to have value, but its role is limited and is unlikely to broaden.

The pharmacoeconomics of patient managementis important in the case of the critically ill. Pain palliationand improvements to quality of life are treatment goals for patientswith metastatic prostate cancer and can actually

Neuroendocrine differentiation has been foundin 50% to 100% of prostate neoplasms of all stages. Furthermore,10% of prostatic tumors are extensively or fully differentiated.Thus, neuroendocrine-specific

Hormonal therapy for prostate cancer designedto reduce testosterone levels has been employed for decades andprovides objective remission rates of 40% to 60% and subjectiveresponse rates of 60% to 85%. Orchiectomy, as