Conventional wisdom says that testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) is unsafe for men who have been treated for prostate cancer. However, a small but growing body of research could provide justification for TRT in symptomatic men who have undergone definitive treatment for the disease.
Although several large, well-controlled, randomized studies support the use of adjuvant radiation therapy (RT) in all men with T3 disease following radical prostatectomy, none of these studies show significant overall survival benefits. This raises the question of whether physicians should employ this therapy more selectively.
While luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist injections offer patients advantages like flexibility and regular physician contact, LHRH implants can provide the convenience of once-yearly visits, as well as lower overhead for urologists.
A new 3-D technique for mapping biopsies and targeting focal therapy appears promising for imaging and guiding treatment of low-risk prostate cancers.
In 2008, urology is focusing on interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS) in earnest, with important clinical trial results.
Several challenging issues related to urologic trauma and reconstructive surgery include management of bladder neck stenosis after prostate cancer therapy, advanced urethral reconstruction for benign disease, and renal trauma.
New technologies that allow single-port transluminal endoscopic surgery will likely draw considerable attention to the area of laparoscopic techniques and technologies
Increasingly, genetics is changing the way urologists diagnose and treat problems related to male infertility. As lab findings become clinical realities, andrologists and general urologists alike are finding their daily practices changed by advances in our understanding of the human genome.
In chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), two pivotal clinical trials "are going to have an immediate impact on the way you practice," said Anthony J. Schæffer, MD, professor and chairman of the department of urology at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago.
In the office and the operating room, urologists are finding an array of more palatable approaches to managing pediatric cases.
Misconceptions about the origin of Peyronie's disease can lead to therapeutic strategies that have little or no chance of succeeding, according to Dr. Mulcahy.
Glenn M. Preminger, MD, professor of urologic surgery and director of the Comprehensive Kidney Stone Center at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, suggests that the next decade might best be spent refining those technologies and determining which patients are likely to derive the greatest benefit from these advances.
The expanding use of laparoscopic techniques in urologic surgery has placed a greater demand on training programs to develop better methods to provide laparoscopic skill training. Researchers from the United Kingdom have examined how changing the temporal relationship between hand movement and perception of that movement on the monitor affected the rate of acquisition of laparoscopic skills.
The advent of the taxanes has been an important recent breakthrough in the treatment of advanced prostate cancer, and the availability of these new chemotherapeutic agents has been accompanied by an explosion in research investigating new protocols, especially involving multimodal regimens combining a taxane with immunotherapy or hormonal therapy.
While immediate cystectomy offers excellent long-term outcomes for patients with high-grade T1 transitional cell carcinoma, genetic biomarkers one day could help urologists select the most appropriate candidates for this surgery.
Percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PNL) continues to be an effective minimally invasive approach to the treatment of large-volume renal stone disease.
Urologists can look forward to having better markers for diagnosis and staging and the opportunity to confidently offer appropriate patients less invasive Urologists can look forward to having better markers for diagnosis and staging and the opportunity to confidently offer appropriate patients less invasive procedures to minimize treatment-related morbidity.
Welcome to the AUA annual meeting preview, brought to you by the editorial staff of Urology Times.
Taking the relationship between erectile dysfunction and cardiovascular disease to a new level, American Medical Systems has launched a campaign to “Save 100 Additional Lives” through heightened patient awareness about the issue of ED as a potential detector of heart and vascular disease. The program was initiated recently through physician outreach by leading cardiologists and urologists in the Chicago area.
EDAP TMS has announced that Atlantic Urology in Daytona Beach, FL, has received Institutional Review Board approval to participate in the company’s ongoing ENLIGHT phase II/III clinical trial of Ablatherm high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) in patients with localized prostate cancer.
The FDA has approved Mixject, a new delivery system for triptorelin pamoate (Trelstar), a palliative treatment for advanced prostate cancer. Mixject combines triptorelin depot, 3.75 mg, and long-acting triptorelin, 11.25 mg, with new features that make preparation, administration, and disposal easier, according to Watson Pharmaceuticals, the manufactuer of triptorelin.
Exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals, such as persistent organochlorine pesticides, is associated with the risk of both seminomatous and nonseminomatous testicular germ cell tumors, whereas exposure to chlordane compounds and metabolites may be associated with the risk of seminoma, according to a study published in an online issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (April 28).
A new study reveals that many cancer survivors are inactive and obese, which may negatively affect the control of their disease. The findings, which come from a study of cancer survivors in Canada, show that a cancer diagnosis does not appear to prompt significant behavior change and that interventions to increase physical activity and promote better eating habits among cancer survivors are warranted.
Anticholinergic drugs may cause older people to experience greater decline in their thinking skills than people not taking the drugs, according to research presented at the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting in Chicago.
Spanish researchers have found a means of distinguishing between high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HGPIN) lesions destined to become cancerous and those that will remain benign, which may spare patients the discomfort and inconvenience of unnecessary needle biopsies, according to a study in Clinical Cancer Research (2008; 14:2617-22).
Postoperative ileus is a common result after major abdominal surgery, and frequently resolves within days after surgery. However, prolongedileus can result in increased pain and morbidity and increased time to hospital discharge. A multimodal approach using preventive and therapeutic strategies can definitively mange postoperative ileus.
Researchers have developed a novel technique of performing laparoscopic partial nephrectomy without renal hilar clamping that appears to minimize blood loss during the procedure.
