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San Antonio--A new estimate shows that chronic prostatitis, especially nonbacterial prostatitis, is common in American men, and that most diagnosis and treatment takes place in primary care.

San Antonio--The epidemiologic confusion wrought by the introduction of the PSA test in the 1990s appears to have settled down at the opening of the new century, according to a study of biopsy patterns presented here at the 2005 AUA annual meeting. Biopsy rates that had soared early in the decade have fallen dramatically, and the incidence of prostate cancer has stabilized.

San Antonio--A study presented here at the annual AUA meeting confirmed what many urologists have suspected: The sexual health of men is affected by the severity of their lower urinary tract symptoms. Researchers also found that sexual health declined with age, while African-American patients fared slightly worse than Caucasian patients in terms of sexual function.

Please discuss the trial you presented at this year's AUA annual meeting and its implications for the use of hormonal therapy in early prostate cancer.

Chicago--As the new horse at the track, cryotherapy is struggling to show its stride as a viable, effective treatment option for early prostate cancer.

Chicago--For early-stage prostate cancer, "brachytherapy has emerged as the weapon of choice," said Gregory Merrick, MD, of the Schiffler Cancer Center and Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia, in his opening remarks at the Windy City Shoot-Out here.

Orlando, FL--Older men with hormone-refractory prostate cancer (HRPC) have a modest increase in risk of death compared with younger men, but only when age is considered as a continuous variable, a new study suggests. By contrast, when the same re-searchers evaluated risk of mortality in men categorized as less than 65 years and 65 years of age or older, no significant difference was found, according to the study, which was presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting here.

Orlando, FL--Atrasentan (Xinlay), a novel cytostatic agent, provides significant clinical benefit to patients with metastatic hormone-refractory prostate cancer, suggesting that it could be a valuable addition to the limited treatment options available for this patient population.

Orlando, FL--A small clinical trial presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting has demonstrated the feasibility of a vaccine strategy for the treatment of men with prostate cancer who had completed neoadjuvant chemotherapy or hormone therapy at least 6 months prior to enrollment. The multi-institutional phase II study evaluated the role of vaccination in men with rising PSA after local treatment for prostate cancer using a prime/boost approach with vaccinia virus and fowl pox virus expressing PSA.

Orlando, FL--The addition of the nonsteroidal antiandrogen bicalutamide (Casodex) to a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist (LHRHa) confers significant benefits over LHRH monotherapy as first-line treatment for advanced prostate cancer, according to a study presented by Japanese researchers at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting here.

Orlando, FL--Treatment with a novel form of immunotherapy known as APC8015 (Provenge) offers a substantial survival advantage in asymptomatic prostate cancer patients with metastatic disease who have failed to respond to hormone treatment, according to findings from a placebo-controlled phase III trial. At 36 months, 34% of the treated patients were alive versus 11% of those on placebo.

San Antonio--The adverse side effects of hormone therapy in prostate cancer patients may be more severe and manifest sooner than many might believe, according to two separate studies presented here at the 2005 AUA annual meeting.

San Antonio—Researchers continue to probe the effects of docetaxel (Taxotere) on prostate cancer in efforts to devise the most efficacious application of the compound. Combining the agent with thalidomide (Thalomid) appears to enhance survival in androgen-independent disease, according to a phase II National Cancer Institute study whose initial data appeared earlier this year.

San Antonio--The foundation for a wider application of docetaxel (Taxotere) in prostate cancer is being laid, but it is far from complete. Two major studies appearing last year allowed the drug to replace mitoxantrone (Novantrone) as a first-line treatment in hormone-resistant metastatic prostate cancer. Data from a continuing phase II study of the agent as adjuvant therapy in radical prostatectomy patients at high risk of recurrence were presented here at the AUA annual meeting. Initial findings have shown that the drug is well tolerated, with reversible side effects.

We know the PSA test is not perfect. Nevertheless, we must move forward and continue to raise awareness about prostate cancer.

Coding for cystourethroscopy

Screening for detrusor activity in women who are undergoing surgery for pure or predominant stress incontinence is not an efficient practice, according to findings from a large study presented here on Thursday.

Pelvic floor muscle training is a safe, noninvasive method to significantly improve the symptoms of stress urinary incontinence. Just 8 weeks of training can provide relief to some patients that lasts for years, Japanese researchers reported on Thursday.

With the help of magnetic resonance imaging, University of Michigan researchers have determined that the external anal sphincter (EAS) has three different components: a main component (EAS-M), a lateral wing portion (EAS-W), and a subcutaneous component (SQ-EAS).

Trans-sacral magnetic stimulation using a portable device yielded no discernable benefits over a sham device in patients with overactive bladder in a study presented here yesterday. It remains unclear, said the authors, whether this failure is due to the particular manner in which the device delivered the magnetic field or whether magnetic stimulation in general is simply an ineffective treatment for this condition.

Results of a U.S. phase II trial investigating the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of the nonselective muscarinic antagonist fesoterodine fumarate in patients with detrusor overactivity offer hope for the 10% of men and women over age 40 years who have the syndrome, researchers say.

Factors such as body mass index, smoking, and the use of hormone replacement therapy affect whether women will develop various forms of incontinence in later life, according to results of a longitudinal study from Germany presented here yesterday.

Uroplasty, Inc. has received FDA 510(k) premarket clearance to distribute I-STOP, a polypropylene, tension-free mid-urethral sling for the treatment of female urinary stress incontinence.

The FDA has approved for marketing Novasys Medical's Renessa System, a treatment for stress urinary incontinence due to hypermobility in women unresponsive to conservative care who are not candidates for surgical therapy.

The frequency volume chart (FVC), coupled with bladder perception, is useful to assess voiding patterns, which may include convenience voids and urgency, particularly in women who have overactive bladder, according to research presented here yesterday.

An estimate of bladder weight using ultrasound can help predict both which patients with BPH will eventually require a prostatectomy and which ones will have favorable outcomes following the procedure, according to a Japanese study.

A revised version of a questionnaire designed to assess a wide range of vaginal symptoms is sufficiently sensitive and valid, and can detect changes in a patient's status, researchers reported yesterday.

A potent analog of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) significantly suppressed bladder overactivity without affecting bladder contractility in an animal model of interstitial cystitis, according to researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine who presented their findings here Wednesday. Their study showed that because the analgesic, known as ajulemic acid, stopped the underlying cause of irritation &#8212 bladder overactivity &#8212 it was able to eliminate the pain associated with IC.

Montreal – 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.

Procedures 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.