Adipose-derived stem cells build new bladders in animal model
August 31st 2005Montreal – UCLA researchers have discovered that adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) can be coaxed into building new bladders in rats, providing hope that one day a similar approach can be used for bladder reconstruction in humans. Human trials, however, are still a long way off.
TOT may manage urgency better than TVT in patients with stress incontinence
August 31st 2005Procedures using tension-free vaginal tape (TVT, Gynecare/Ethicon, Somerville, NJ) or trans-obturator tape (TOT, Mentor Corp., Santa Barbara, CA) appear to equally treat the incontinence associated with stress urinary incontinence. TOT, however, may leave patients more comfortable because it is associated with a lower risk of urgency symptoms, Italian researchers say.
ICS Daily Updates - September 1- September 3
August 24th 2005Urology Times E-news will roll out a special edition of UT Daily Meeting Report during the upcoming International Continence Society annual meeting in Montreal, with coverage beginning Aug. 31. Check your e-mail inbox for daily news on stress incontinence, overactive bladder, and more. As a current E-news subscriber, you are automatically signed up to receive the Daily Meeting Report. Your colleagues can register at www.urologytimes.com/enews.
ICS Daily Updates - September 1- September 3
August 24th 2005Urology Times E-news will roll out a special edition of UT Daily Meeting Report during the upcoming International Continence Society annual meeting in Montreal, with coverage beginning Aug. 31. Check your e-mail inbox for daily news on stress incontinence, overactive bladder, and more. As a current E-news subscriber, you are automatically signed up to receive the Daily Meeting Report. Your colleagues can register at www.urologytimes.com/enews.
ICS Daily Updates - September 1- September 3
August 24th 2005Urology Times E-news will roll out a special edition of UT Daily Meeting Report during the upcoming International Continence Society annual meeting in Montreal, with coverage beginning Aug. 31. Check your e-mail inbox for daily news on stress incontinence, overactive bladder, and more. As a current E-news subscriber, you are automatically signed up to receive the Daily Meeting Report. Your colleagues can register at www.urologytimes.com/enews.
Researchers identify cellular mechanism that arrests PCa
August 18th 2005Researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, have determined that prostate tumor growth is arrested through a biological process called cellular senescence, in which cells stop proliferating and remain alive but fail to respond to normal growth signals.
Robotic surgery expert joins Ohio State
August 18th 2005Vipul Patel, MD, a specialist in treating prostate and kidney cancer, has joined The Ohio State University Medical Center, Columbus, as clinical associate professor of surgery and will also direct a fellowship program in minimally invasive surgery.
Major changes in diet, lifestyle may halt prostate Ca progression
August 18th 2005Men with early-stage prostate cancer who make intensive changes in diet and lifestyle may stop or even reverse its progression, according to what researchers are calling the first randomized, controlled trial showing that lifestyle changes may affect the progression of any type of cancer (J Urol 2005; 174:1065-70).
Post-prostatectomy radiotherapy improves survival
August 18th 2005Radiotherapy after radical prostatectomy appears to improve biochemical progression-free survival and local control in patients with pT3 prostate cancers or positive margins, according to European research published in The Lancet (2005; 366:572-8).
Measures can help restore post-RP erectile function
August 15th 2005No single study on the topic of sexual dysfunction leapt from the podium as a breakthrough at this year's AUA annual meeting, but a number of studies offered valuable observations about various aspects of sexual function/dysfunction. Among these were studies showing that the degree of personal involvement in restoring sexual function after radical prostatectomy correlates with the degree of success, said John Mulcahy, MD, PhD, professor of urology, Indiana University Medical Center, Indianapolis. Also, research showed that erectile dysfunction can be associated with metabolic disorders and heart disease, and when prescriptions with level 1 interactions overlap, they are often for sildenafil citrate (Viagra) and nitrates.
Half of sildenafil users stay on prescription 5 years post-radical prostatectomy
August 15th 2005San Antonio--Five years after radical prostatectomy, fewer than half of the men with erectile dysfunction who responded initially to sildenafil citrate (Viagra) continued to respond to the drug, which works best in patients who have had bilateral nerve-sparing surgery, according to a report presented at the AUA annual meeting here.
One-fourth of prostate cancer patients take complementary agents
August 15th 2005San Antonio--The United States and United Kingdom are two nations united by a common language and also an apparent proclivity for using complementary therapies to treat prostate cancer. A study presented at the AUA annual meeting found that one in four prostate cancer patients in the United Kingdom used complementary medicines. A similar report, published 2 years ago in the Journal of Clinical Oncology (2003; 21:2199-210), found that 23.5% of U.S. patients used complementary medicine.
Claim that PSA era is over not true, studies show
August 15th 2005San Antonio--Thomas Stamey, MD, professor of urology at Stanford (CA) University, more or less threw down the gauntlet last year when he and his colleagues stated in a headline in the Journal of Urology: "The prostate specific antigen era in the U.S. is over for prostate cancer: What happened in the last 20 years?" (J Urol 2004; 172:1297-301).
Finasteride may not be related to high-grade tumors
August 15th 2005San Antonio--A study relating prostate size to tumor grade presented here at the AUA annual meeting appears to dispel the concern that finasteride (Proscar) as a prophylaxis for prostate cancer might increase the incidence of higher-grade tumors.
Neuromodulation for IC may not stand test of time
August 15th 2005San Antonio--Initial encouraging results of sacral neuromodulation for interstitial cystitis may not hold up in the long term, according to a study from The Cleveland Clinic Foundation presented at the AUA annual meeting. The variable results raise questions about which patients may benefit best from the therapy and what the best techniques may be, but they don't preclude these urologists from offering sacral neuromodulation to these IC patients as a treatment option.
Botulinum toxin for voiding dysfunction progresses
August 15th 2005San Antonio--A number of new techniques for management of urinary incontinence and other female urologic problems are affording promising results, according to studies presented at the AUA annual meeting. However, urologists wondering about integrating those approaches into their clinical practices need to be very careful in considering the data, paying special attention to issues of durability and comparisons with existing treatment approaches, said Shlomo Raz, MD, professor of urology at UCLA School of Medicine.
Technology and increased skill advance laparoscopy
August 15th 2005San Antonio--Application of laparoscopic surgical techniques continues to expand in urology. As experience with laparoscopy grows, the efficiency and results improve. Several noteworthy presentations related to laparoscopic surgery at the 2005 AUA meeting caught the attention of Stephen Y. Nakada, MD, chairman of urology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Probiotic treatment, new lithotriptor highlight stone advances
August 15th 2005From surgical techniques to genetic manipulation, researchers continue to find new and novel ways to deal with the age-old problem of stone disease. Urologists are now better equipped to deal with the condition than they have ever been, said Glenn M. Preminger, MD, professor of urology and director of the Comprehensive Kidney Stone Center at Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC.
Measures can help restore post-RP erectile function
August 15th 2005No single study on the topic of sexual dysfunction leapt from the podium as a breakthrough at this year's AUA annual meeting, but a number of studies offered valuable observations about various aspects of sexual function/dysfunction. Among these were studies showing that the degree of personal involvement in restoring sexual function after radical prostatectomy correlates with the degree of success, said John Mulcahy, MD, PhD, professor of urology, Indiana University Medical Center, Indianapolis. Also, research showed that erectile dysfunction can be associated with metabolic disorders and heart disease, and when prescriptions with level 1 interactions overlap, they are often for sildenafil citrate (Viagra) and nitrates.
PSA kinetics provide meaningful outcomes estimates
August 15th 2005In patients with prostate cancer, measures of PSA kinetics are proving to be accurate predictors of outcomes as well as treatment efficacy in those patients who are receiving systemic therapy. This, along with reports about the use of traditional and nontraditional agents for slowing the progression of PSA rise and the effects of androgen deprivation on bone, headed the key take-home messages in advanced prostate cancer presented at this year's AUA annual meeting.
Quinolone-resistant E coli strain a major threat
August 15th 2005One by one, drug-resistant microbes have weakened or destroyed the efficacy of established antimicrobials. The appearance of a strain of urinary tract infection-associated Escherichia coli that is resistant to ciprofloxacin (Cipro, Proquin) is not necessarily a surprise, but it is a significant concern, according to Anthony J. Schaeffer, MD, chairman of the department of urology, Northwestern School of Medicine, Chicago.
Spermatogenesis cycle shorter than previously thought
August 15th 2005Advances in the field of male infertility continue to provide insight into the factors and processes that make fertility possible. Ultimately, the advances lead to techniques that extend the possibility of fertility to an ever-increasing population of patients.