Obesity doesn't influence need for secondary prostate cancer treatment
July 1st 2006Atlanta-In a recent study of nearly 6,500 men treated for localized pros-tate cancer, researchers found that being obese did not significantly affect the need for secondary treatment, nor did it result in decreased overall or disease-specific survival.
VEGF, TP1 may mark presence of sperm in men with NOA
July 1st 2006Chicago-A widely studied protein can help urologists find sperm to be used for in vitro fertilization and may even indicate another future pharmaceutical application of the substance, according to research presented here at the American Society of Andrology annual meeting here.
Chronic prostate inflammation may predispose for cancer
July 1st 2006Atlanta-Chronic prostatic inflammation may increase the chance that a man will develop prostate cancer, suggesting that men with inflammation on biopsy may need to be followed more closely and perhaps even be re-biopsied more aggressively, even if there is no evidence of cancer.
Dr. von Eschenbach steps down from NCI post; Dr. Niederhuber appointed
June 15th 2006John Niederhuber, MD, has been designated to serve as acting director of the National Cancer Institute. Andrew von Eschenbach, MD, formally submitted his resignation as NCI director and will continue to serve as acting FDA commissioner.
Combination therapy increases PSA doubling time in prostate cancer patients
June 15th 2006A combination of sipuleucel-T (Provenge) active cellular immunotherapy for prostate cancer and bevacizumab (Avastin) significantly increased the PSA doubling time in patients with prostate cancer who had relapsed after prior surgical and radiation therapy, according to recently published data from the Cleveland Clinic Taussig Cancer Center and the University of California, San Francisco.
Indications for prostate biopsy: Should all men have them?
June 1st 2006Brisbane, Australia-Decisions about when and how to perform prostate biopsy have become more complex in recent years, said Michael Jewett, MD, professor of surgery (urology), University of Toronto, in an address at the Urological Society of Australasia annual meeting here. The objective of biopsy should be to detect prostate cancer in men who will benefit from the information they yield.
Once-daily alpha-blocker curbs BPH symptoms
June 1st 2006Paris-Once-daily administration of a newer alpha-blocker appears to have a positive effect in the treatment of patients suffering from lower urinary tract symptoms and BPH compared with placebo, but comes up short in preventing acute urinary retention occurrence, according to Claus G. Roehrborn, MD, professor and chairman of the department of urology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas. Dr. Roehrborn presented the results of a 2-year study at the European Association of Urology annual congress here.
TUMT found effective in treating LUTS at 8 years
June 1st 2006Paris-In patients with lower urinary tract symptoms due to bladder outlet obstruction, targeted high-energy transurethral microwave thermotherapy (TUMT) provides a suitable option for improvement of their condition, according to Bob Djavan, MD, who presented the results of an 8-year, multicenter, European study at the European Association of Urology annual congress here.
Perineal AUS placement favored for urinary control
June 1st 2006Atlanta-The debate over the most appropriate surgical approach for placement of an artificial urinary sphincter (AUS) may be coming to a resolution. In the largest retrospective trial reported to date, Gerard D. Henry, MD, a urologist with Regional Urology, Shreveport, LA, found that the traditional perineal approach offers significantly better urinary control than the newer penoscrotal insertion approach.
THC analog shows promise in painful bladder syndrome
June 1st 2006Atlanta-Intravesical administration of an agent that is chemically related to cannabis produces a positive response in laboratory rats and may be useful in patients with painful bladder syndrome/interstitial cystitis, investigators from the University of Pittsburgh reported at the AUA annual meeting.
Five states fail prostate cancer report card
June 1st 2006Five states failed the first-ever prostate cancer state-by-statereport card issued by the National Prostate Cancer Coalition.Alabama, Arkansas, Idaho, Mississippi, and Wisconsin did not makethe grade while California, Connecticut, Kansas, and New York allearned As.
Medicare trustees' report: It's time to pay the piper
June 1st 2006Washington-A recent report by Medicare trustees warning that the program will run out of money by 2018, 2 years earlier than previously predicted, can be expected to make it more difficult for Medicare physicians to avoid payment reductions and could expedite implementation of the controversial pay for performance (P4P) reforms.
Drug-eluting stents may help manage complications
June 1st 2006Brisbane, Australia-Intravesical instillation of certain drugs has proven to be safe in reducing stent-related symptoms in patients undergoing ureteroscopy, and drug-eluting stents could eventually become a new treatment paradigm for other urologic disorders, such as bladder cancer and interstitial cystitis, said John Denstedt, MD, professor of urology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON. Dr. Denstedt discussed current research in stent technology and prospects for the future in a presentation at the Urological Society of Australasia annual meeting here.
Studies build evidence for botulinum toxin in OAB
June 1st 2006Brisbane, Australia-Patients with neurogenic bladder overactivity treated with botulinum toxin A (Botox) have shown improvements in incontinence of up to 50% compared with placebo, but questions about the agent need to be addressed in further prospective, randomized trials before botulinum toxin can be accepted as an established treatment for voiding dysfunction, said Jeffrey Thavaseelan, MD, head of urology at the Royal Perth Hospital, Western Australia.
Higher BMI is associated with more severe BPH
June 1st 2006Paris-Significant statistical correlations are seen between body mass index (BMI) and BPH symptoms, according to Claus G. Roehrborn, MD, who led a global 4-year treatment study evaluating the relationships of BMI and both measures of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS)/BPH severity and metabolic syndrome. Results of the study were presented at the European Association of Urology annual congress here.