All News

John P. Stein, MD, a professor at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine and an internationally known specialist in urologic cancers and bladder reconstruction, died April 11 in Naples, FL. He was 45.

The use of MRI without endorectal coil can detect prostate cancer and provide undistorted images with diagnostic image quality and accurate tumor localization, according to a study conducted by researchers at the Ohio State University, Columbus.

Patients with pelvic recurrence after radical cystectomy for transitional cell carcinoma have a poor prognosis, even with subsequent therapy, emphasizing the need for optimum local control at the time of initial treatment, according to a study published in The British Journal of Urology International (2008; 101:969–72).

Two injectable drugs for the treatment of BPH are approaching critical milestones: one, a phase II trial of the investigational drug NX-1207; the other, enrollment in the first of three multicenter phase III trials of cetrorelix.

Urigen Pharmaceuticals has announced the early closure of its study of a drug known as URG101 due to positive, statistically significant interim analysis results in both the primary and all secondary endpoints. Top-line results of the interim analysis, which was planned at 50% enrollment, were previously released March 12.

The efficacy of the CyberKnife robotic radiosurgery system in delivering complex, high dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy to the prostate noninvasively without the need for hospitalization or anesthesia has been reported in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics (2008; 70:1588-97).

A combination of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug celecoxib (Celebrex) and the cholesterol-lowering drug atorvastatin (Lipitor) appears to stop early-stage prostate cancer from transitioning into its more aggressive stage, according to an animal study conducted by researchers at Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ.

Bostwick Laboratories has opened a new medical laboratory in Nashville, TN. This is the company’s sixth addition to locations in the United States and the United Kingdom.

In midlife women, worsening of incontinence symptoms does not appear to be attributable to the menopausal transition, according to a multicenter study. The study’s authors say that modifiable factors such as weight gain may be to blame (Obstet Gynecol 2008; 111:667-77).

Cryotherapy provides long-term disease control equivalent to that of more conventional therapies for patients with localized prostate cancer, according to a study published in Urology (2008; 71:515-8).

Oral dapoxetine demonstrates benefits in both men with premature ejaculation and their partners, report the authors of a multinational phase III clinical trial.

Scientists have identified six new genes that play a role in the development of type 2 diabetes, and among the group is the second gene known to also play a role in prostate cancer (Nat Genet 2008; 40:310-5).

Children with bilateral Wilms’ tumors can retain normal function in both kidneys by undergoing bilateral nephron-sparing surgery, even when preoperative scans suggest that the tumors are inoperable, report researchers at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN.

Magnetic resonance imaging findings in prostate cancer patients about to undergo radiation therapy can help predict the likelihood that the cancer will return and spread post-treatment, according to a new study published in Radiology (2008; 247:141-6).

The administration's Medicare budget met with substantial disdain on Capitol Hill.

The Medicare Administrative Contractor is a new contract reform project that will enhance the flow of data for services charged to Medicare.

Daily use of a penile extender device shows promise as a safe, effective, and noninvasive treatment for Peyronie's disease.

Outcomes with a new sexual function questionnaire correlate well with validated measures of psychosocial function, patient satisfaction, erection hardness, erectile function, and sexual function.

Chicago-A preoperative skin preparation product may be an effective, time-saving alternative for reducing skin bacterial counts preoperatively in men undergoing penile prosthesis surgery, say the authors of a pilot study from the University of South Florida, Tampa.

Results of a study comparing the in vitro antibacterial activity of antibiotic-dipped and non-antibiotic-dipped components of inflatable penile implants show differences favoring Titan implants dipped into antibiotic solutions of rifampin-gentamicin or bacitracin-gentamicin compared with the antibiotic (rifampin-minocycline)-coated technology of Inhibizone.

Men who present with infertility issues and their partners are relatively uninformed about the causes and treatments of male infertility, a fact that may be attributable to urologists' failure to properly market their capabilities in this area of clinical practice.

Higher intakes of soy foods and soy isoflavones were associated with reduced sperm concentrations in a Harvard study.

Children who do not respond to treatment for urgency frequency syndrome may have underlying neuropsychiatric disorders that need treatment before UFS symptoms can be resolved.

Video urodynamic studies found serious underlying pathology in a majority of cerebral palsy children who had urinary incontinence.

Presentations at the American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Urology annual meeting indicate slow, methodical progress in efforts to engineer biologically active tissues.

Two groups have taken innovative steps to match technology with important clinical problems: the microscope with NOA and the Whitaker test with EDO.