George F. Ellis, MD, a urologist from Longwood, FL, and founder and chairman of the Primary Care Access Network (PCAN), was a recipient of the 2005 Surgical Volunteerism Awards, presented by the American College of Surgeons and the Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative for selfless efforts as a volunteer surgeon to the medically underserved.
Three separate European studies have documented the success of high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) in treating prostate cancer.
An interim analysis of a phase III trial of patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma shows an estimated 39% improvement in survival in patients receiving the investigational drug sorafenib tosylate (Nexavar) compared with those receiving placebo (p=.018).
Researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia recommend more aggressive treatment in men whose prostate cancers occurred after transurethral resection of the prostate and whose PSA level is considered intermediate.
New data from The National Birth Defects Prevention Study provide additional evidence that pregnancy-related intake of progestins is associated with increased hypospadias risk.
Treating high-risk prostate cancer patients with radiation therapy in conjunction with hormone therapy for more than 1 year allows patients to live longer and to achieve better PSA control, according to a study from the BC Cancer Agency, Victoria, British Columbia.
Leaders from the medical, government, industry, and academic communities, among others, have unveiled a public awareness campaign to help spread the message about imaging technologies that may some day transform early detection and treatment of prostate cancer.
From 2003 to 2004, multispecialty practices overall were squeezed by cost increases that exceeded revenue gains, according to results of a recently released cost survey from the Medical Group Management Association.
A new biomarker identified by researchers at Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, may indicate a more aggressive form of prostate cancer.
Mitchell C. Benson, MD, has been appointed chairman of the department of urology at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and urologist-in-chief at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia.
Patients with advanced prostate cancer taking sipuleucel-T (Provenge), an investigational active cellular immunotherapy, have shown extended survival versus those receiving placebo in a second phase III study.
Measurement of telomerase activity in urine appears promising for the detection of bladder cancer in men, according to a study published last week in JAMA (2005; 294:2052-6).
New York—Urologists in private practice find balancing time to practice medicine and manage their practice daunting—and they don't expect it to get easier.
Vancouver, British Columbia--It's known that smoking increases the risk of transitional cell carcinoma by approximately two to three times over the baseline rate. Researchers now say that pelvic radiation may further increase the risk of TCC in smokers.
Vancouver, British Columbia--It's known that smoking increases the risk of transitional cell carcinoma by approximately two to three times over the baseline rate. Researchers now say that pelvic radiation may further increase the risk of TCC in smokers.
Interactive CD-ROM provides model for LHRH therapy, Intermittent catheter offers safety, comfort, Recorder, e-transcription software speed productivity
Washington--Legislation backed by AUA to abolish the controversial Sustainable Growth Rate (SGR) formula in the Medicare fee schedule also contains provisions designed to implement a payment system based on "pay for performance," a plan to compensate physicians according to the quality of care they provide.
The front office should never have to go back to the clinical department to get clarification from a doctor or nurse to process a patient at the end of a visit.
New York—Urologists in private practice find balancing time to practice medicine and manage their practice daunting—and they don't expect it to get easier.
The overwhelming majority of employees who leave any practice leave because of the way they are treated.
The CCI edits reflect the way the Medicare computer has been programmed and the way you will be paid when you submit your claim.
Detection rates improve with extended biopsy protocols, but the definition of clinically significant disease remains elusive.
Chicago--A study of cytokines in expressed prostatic secretions (EPS) has identified two potential candidates as diagnostic markers for inflammatory and noninflammatory forms of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS), according to researchers from Northwestern University Medical Center in Chicago.
Paris--Most cases of chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) are spontaneous with unknown causes, and more studies are needed on all aspects of the condition, said Anthony Schaeffer, MD, who chaired the Committee on Prostatitis and Chronic Pelvic Pain at the International Consultation on New Developments in Prostate Cancer and Prostate Diseases here.
Paris--Minimally invasive and surgical treatments for BPH are poorly studied and lack standardized techniques, said Jean de la Rosette, MD, of the department of urology, University of Amsterdam. Dr. de la Rosette chaired a committee on these rapidly expanding treatment approaches at the International Consultation on New Developments in Prostate Cancer and Prostate Diseases. Therapies considered by the committee included transurethral microwave thermotherapy, transurethral needle ablation, transurethral resection of the prostate, water-induced thermotherapy, transurethral ethanol ablation of the prostate (TEAP), prosthetic stents, and lasers.
Vancouver, British Columbia--Patients with renal cell carcinoma are twice as likely to be diagnosed with stage 1 disease today as they were in 1985, according to data from the National Cancer Database (NCDB).
Urology education and training are undergoing sweeping changes at the postgraduate level.
Ann Arbor, MI--Researchers at the University of Michigan Medical School are developing a new test for prostate cancer, one that takes advantage of the sensitivity of the immune response. If the test achieves only a portion of its promise, it will have a significant impact on false-positive results generated by the current PSA screening test and on the unnecessary biopsies that subsequently follow.
Paris--The term "lower urinary tract symptoms," or LUTS, is controversial because many urologists regard it as a replacement for prostatism, which focuses mainly on voiding dysfunction. But the most bothersome symptoms of LUTS relate to storage, said Christopher Chapple, MD.
Paris--Although there is very little evidence for primary prevention of BPH and LUTS, evidence does exist for tertiary prevention after the condition is established, said Claus G. Roehrborn, MD, who chaired a committee on prevention of BPH outcomes at the International Consultation on New Developments in Prostate Cancer and Prostate Diseases.
