Prostate Cancer

A CMS quality measure needs to be bidirectional, “specifying a rate of observation for low-risk disease and a rate of treatment for high-risk disease,” researchers say.

A retrospective analysis looks at the short-term morbidity associated with transfusion among patients in the National Surgical Quality Improvement database.

Large study examines surveillance results in men with very low-, low-, intermediate-, and high-risk disease.

Specific clones may have the potential for grade conversion, research suggests.

No significant relationship was found between use of a phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor and prostate cancer recurrence after treatment in a nested case-control study.

High-intensity focused ultrasound as salvage therapy allows for intermediate-term disease control in selected patients with recurrence following radiation therapy for prostate cancer.

In men with metastatic prostate cancer, those assigned to intermittent androgen deprivation therapy have more ischemic and thrombotic events than those assigned to continuous androgen deprivation, according to Columbia University researchers.

Treatment options for high-risk prostate cancer perform similarly. In a single-institution study, radical prostatectomy was associated with worse biochemical failure, less clinical failure, and superior prostate cancer-specific mortality compared with radiation therapy and brachytherapy, reported Jay P. Ciezki, MD, at the 2016 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco.

Four current clinical practice guidelines on prostate cancer provide urologists with valuable, evidence-based decision points about diagnosis and treatment while raising questions that will likely be addressed by future research.

A meta-analysis of 6,884 men with prostate cancer who underwent external beam radiation therapy reveals surprising findings about dose escalation.

The three-gene expression assay could “reduce hundreds of thousands of invasive biopsies each year,” a study author says.

In May 2013, the AUA and the American Society for Radiation Oncology released a joint guideline for radiotherapy after prostatectomy (J Urol 2013; 190:441-9). As a framework for practitioners caring for men who undergo surgery for treatment of prostate cancer, the evidence-based guideline contains nine statements that address use of adjuvant and salvage radiotherapy, conduct of a restaging evaluation, patient counseling, and a definition for biochemical recurrence

New clinical practice guidelines for the management of prostate cancer from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network expand the number of patients who may be considered for active surveillance to those with favorable intermediate-risk prostate cancer.

Years ago, decisions about screening men for PSA looked relatively straightforward. You offered screening to patients aged 40 or older, performed a biopsy on the ones with a total PSA >4.0 ng/mL, and offered treatment to those with positive biopsies. Today, conflicting guidelines and new techniques in cancer detection and treatment have left clinicians with a more complicated puzzle. The good news, experts say, is that physicians who put these pieces together stand a better chance of protecting their patients’ health than ever before.

In its current iteration, the AUA's CRPC guideline contains 20 statements relating to treatments for six index patients defined by the presence or absence of metastatic disease, presence and degree of symptoms, ECOG performance status, and prior treatment with docetaxel (Taxotere) along with two statements on the use of preventive treatments for bone health.

To guide you through the 2016 AUA annual meeting and help maximize your time, Urology Times’ editorial board has reviewed the program to identify the key trends and noteworthy research at this year’s meeting.

A novel oral TRT agent, bladder control system, and localized prostate cancer agent are among other treatments in the pipeline discussed in this round-up.

In this interview, Daniel W. Lin, MD, discusses the practical use of currently available molecular and genomic tests, cost and reimbursement considerations, the role of MRI, and what the future holds for biomarkers.

Findings from preoperative multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging may enhance risk stratification, surgical planning, and patient counseling for men with prostate cancer, according to researchers from the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD.

C-11 choline positron emission tomography and multiparametric pelvic magnetic resonance imaging (pMRI) can be used successfully to identify recurrence patterns in patients with biochemical recurrence after radical prostatectomy.

Many approaches have been tried for reducing the rectal toxicity of radiotherapy (Radiat Oncol 2013; 8:96; Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2012; 82:1918-22; Radiat Oncol 2014; 9:96). This article discusses a newer therapy that involves the injection of a temporary hydrogel in the plane between the prostate and rectum.

The patient sued, alleging, that the urologist should not have performed surgery on the patient, and that the second bowel perforation should have been detected and repaired during the original operation. He also claimed he should not have been discharged from the hospital in 3 days.

Also look for coverage of products in the pipeline for bladder pain syndrome/interstitial cystitis, prostate cancer, and male infertility.

Radium 223 dichloride (Ra 223 [Xofigo]) can be safely combined with abiraterone acetate (ZYTIGA) for the treatment of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer with symptomatic bone metastases, and appears to result in decreased bone pain and improved quality of life, according to the interim results of an open-label prospective study known as eRADicAte.

Urology Times SUO internship program member Cory Hugen, MD, reports on a recent Mayo Clinic study on familial history’s impact on post-RP outcomes and survival.