All News

Lymph node-positive prostate cancer is not always indicative of systemic disease.

Radical prostatectomy patients are most likely to use medication for erectile dysfunction after surgery; those who underwent laparoscopic/robotic prostatectomy were most likely to use ED drugs.

The 2008 update of the American Urological Association clinical guidelines for prostate-specific antigen screening will build on the 2000 version while addressing some controversial aspects of screening.

The 20-milligrams per day tamoxifen therapy reduced the severity of androgen deprivation therapy-related symptoms in prostate cancer patients.

Determining androgen receptor activity in castration-resistant prostate cancer may have potential for distinguishing patients who will respond to androgen deprivation from those who will not.

In men with nonmetastatic prostate cancer treated with intermittent androgen deprivation, thalidomide (Thalomid) significantly prolonged progression-free survival compared with placebo.

Intermittent androgen deprivation with a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone analog causes fewer side effects and preserves quality of life compared with continuous combined androgen ablation, and many patients have prolonged treatment-free intervals.

Proper diagnosis and treatment of posterior urethral defects from pelvc fractures is critical toward preventing incontinence, impotence, and recurrent stricture disease.

This article describes a risk-stratified approach based on a three-zone anatomic layout to the periprostatic neural architecture and a modified athermal robotic technique for better continence and potency outcomes without compromising surgical margin rates.

Urologist Andrew C. Novick, MD, chairman of the Cleveland Clinic Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute, died Oct. 18 from complications of lymphoma. He was 60.

An algorithm based on near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) is able to correctly identify more than 85% of men classified as obstructed, using catheter urodynamics, according to study findings published in the Canadian Journal of Urology (2008; 1515:4241-8).

A profound gap exists in the understanding of physicians about the literacy levels of their patients related to the efficacy of written screening tools, including the International Prostate Symptom Score, researchers from Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, reported.

Use of 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors is not associated with increased risk of hip fracture, according to a study published in JAMA (2008; 300:1660-4).

Older and younger patients with renal cancer derive similar benefit from sorafenib (Nexavar) therapy and tolerate the drug equally well, according to a study from the United Kingdom.

Watson Pharmaceuticals has received FDA approval to market silodosin (Rapaflo), an alpha-blocker for the treatment of BPH signs and symptoms.

Elevated serum follicle-stimulating hormone does not predict a lower sperm retrieval rate for men with nonobstructive azoospermia undergoing microdissection tes­ticular sperm extraction, and should not be considered a contraindication for this fertility procedure.

EPCA-2.19, a second, independent epitope of the EPCA-2 protein, offers extremely high sensitivity and specificity results that are almost identical to those obtained for a first published assay using the EPCA-2.22 epitope.

Tubeless percutaneous nephrolithotomy can be performed safely and effectively without preoperative selection, and it appears to be associated with fewer postoperative intracorporeal changes than standard percutaneous nephrolithotomy.

A gel formulation of oxybutynin for overactive bladder is nearing commercial availability, with the potential for a significant improvement in cosmesis and skin-related side effects.

In the search for novel biomarkers for prostate cancer diagnosis, a urinary assay for prostate cancer gene 3 (PCA3) has emerged as a promising modality.

Evaluating the efficacy of radiofrequency ablation of renal cortical tumors requires a degree of patience because histologic changes and cell death in and near lesions targeted by the treatment may continue to evolve for a year or even longer.

A diagnostic assay based on computer chip technology could allow clinicians-and perhaps patients-to identify urinary tract pathogens in 45 minutes or less and it might also determine antibiotic susceptibility.

Incorporating image guidance into robotic surgery significantly enhanced tumor resection in a series of mock procedures involving surgical phantoms

Minneapolis-Coloplast's Titan inflatable penile prosthetic implant is designed for use in men who have erectile dysfunction as a consequence of nerve damage after prostatectomy and who do not respond to oral ED therapy. The implanted device now features a low-profile pump with inflate/deflate touch pads that move at the patient's control to emulate the look and performance of a natural erection. The One-Touch Release pump is designed to make it easier for patients to learn to operate the device.

An adjustable urethral prosthesis significantly improved urinary symptoms, urine leakage, and quality of life in women with stress urinary incontinence who had failed to improve after prior therapy.

Complications after laparoscopic radical prostatectomy demonstrates the effect of a learning curve and the benefits of improved surgical technique, but shows little difference in overall morbidity when compared with those of anatomic radical retropubic prostatectomy .

In overactive bladder, percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation performs just as well as well as the most frequently prescribed drug.

Tensioning is a challenge in transvaginal tape procedures for stress urinary incontinence.