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San Antonio--Results of a prospective, randomized, controlled study undertaken by Italian urologists indicate that expulsive medical therapy is a useful adjunct to extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy in the treatment of ureteral stones.

Urologists should recommend that their patients with stones maintain a normal intake of calcium.

The Cleveland Clinic has announced a new campaign to raise funds for the construction of a new $60 million, state-of-the-art building on its main campus to house the Glickman Urological Institute.

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. and Proctor & Gamble Pharmaceuticals, Inc. have entered into an agreement for the co-promotion and further development of darifenacin (Enablex) extended-release tablets for the treatment of overactive bladder in the United States.

Bayer Pharmaceuticals Corp. and Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., have submitted a new drug application with the FDA for sorafenib for patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma. Submission is based on an ongoing phase III trial suggesting that the drug doubled progression-free survival compared with patients receiving placebo.

A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (2005; 97:975-80) suggests that regular nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug use over a long duration is associated with a modestly reduced risk of prostate cancer.

Patients receiving tamsulosin hydrochloride (Flomax) experienced significantly greater improvement in symptoms associated with BPH than patients who received terazosin hydrochloride (Hytrin) after 4 days of treatment, according to a study appearing in The Journal of Applied Research in Clinical and Experimental Therapeutics (2005; 5:231-45).

Women receiving four weekly bladder-specific acupuncture treatments experienced significant improvements in bladder capacity, urgency, frequency, and quality of life compared with women receiving placebo treatments in a study appearing in Obstetrics & Gynecology (2005; 106:138-43).

Men receiving low-dose rate brachytherapy to combat early-stage prostate cancer are still able to achieve an erection and face a low rate of incontinence 1 year post-treatment, according to a study published in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics (2005; 62:956-64).

Abbott Laboratories has been granted permission by the FDA to initiate an expanded access program for the investigational agent astrasentan (Xinlay) for men with late-stage, hormone refractory prostate cancer.

Barr Laboratories, Inc., has received final FDA approval to market a generic version of desmopressin acetate tablets, 0.1 mg and 0.2 mg, for the management of primary nocturnal enuresis.

A common virus known as adeno-associated virus type 2 (AAV2) appears to kill multiple types of cancer cells, including prostate cancer cells, in laboratory cultures yet has no effect on healthy cells, suggesting its potential to be developed as an anti-cancer agent, according to researchers from Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA.

Up to 84% of doses with the investigational oral phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitor avanafil resulted in erections sufficient for vaginal penetration compared with placebo (p

Men who experience signs and symptoms of prostate obstruction resulting from BPH are three times more likely to develop chronic kidney disease, according to a community-based study from the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN.

A new study appearing in JAMA (2005; 294:66-70) suggests there is no specific PSA value that has both high sensitivity and specificity for monitoring healthy men for prostate cancer, but rather there is a continuum of prostate cancer risk at all values of PSA.

Anaheim, CA--Laboratory data from German investigators point to the use of the CD70 protein as a biomarker for clear-cell renal cell carcinoma and suggest that the marker could be useful in differential diagnosis in cases of uncertain histologic classification. This, in turn, could be very important clinically if found to be present in serum or urine.

Washington--The federal government is considering a new, revolutionary method of reimbursing physicians for Medicare services that could ultimately replace the current system that many complain is filled with inequity.

Software promotes accurate prostate staging

Assets in Section 529 plans are not considered student assets in the formulas used to determine financial aid.

The government has no way, nor should they, of determining what's best for that patient.

Three routes have been used with some success and are favored one over the other on the basis of perceived risk to surrounding structures.

Anaheim, CA--Data from a very large, prospective cohort study suggest that men taking statin drugs may reduce their risk of advanced prostate cancer by more than half and reduce their risk of metastatic or fatal disease by more than two-thirds.

Orlando, FL--Adjuvant radiotherapy for pT3 prostate cancer significantly reduces the risk of biochemical progression after radical prostatectomy with a very low rate of side effects, according to a study by German researchers. But a U.S. radiation oncologist said the findings of this and two related studies are not powerful enough to change the current standard of care.

Orlando, FL--In men with early-stage prostate cancer, permanent prostate seed implantation (PPI) appears to be as effective as high-dose conformal proton beam radiotherapy (CPBRT) in terms of biochemical control and reduction of PSA levels, according to findings from a new study.

Orlando, FL--Men with localized prostate cancer who are treated with primary androgen deprivation therapy tend to be older and to have more comorbidities and lower incomes than men treated by other primary therapies, according to a study presented at the 2005 American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting.

Orlando, FL--American and British scientists have developed a statistical tool for predicting whether a man will survive his prostate cancer for up to 120 months if it is not treated immediately. Michael W. Kattan, PhD, of The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, said the tool should be helpful in patient counseling and clinical trial design.

Orlando, FL--The PSA era has been marked by a well-known stage migration toward less aggressive and potentially more curable prostate cancer. Research now shows that, during the recent PSA era, PSA doubling times have lengthened and PSA failure rates have dropped. The findings suggest that prostate cancer-specific mortality will continue to decline, according to researchers from Tufts University and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston.

Turf battles appear to be heating up between urologists and two specialist groups.