New Orleans--Bicalutamide (Casodex), 50 mg, plus castration leads to an estimated 20% reduction in risk of prostate cancer death versus castration alone, according to results of a historical data analysis presented at the annual of the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting here.
San Francisco--Results from a study evaluating the effect of urinary pH alteration in patients with interstitial cystitis suggest little benefit is likely gained from alkalinizing the urine to a neutral pH. Nevertheless, the question of how urine pH affects IC symptoms remains unanswered and requires further study, concluded the authors, from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver.
San Francisco--The tricyclic antidepressant amitriptyline (Elavil) is a safe and effective treatment for interstitial cystitis with significant benefits for reducing overall symptoms along with pain and urgency, according to the results of a German study.
New Orleans--A combination of common clinical factors can accurately predict which patients who have biochemical failure after radical prostatectomy are likely to develop metastatic progression, said investigators from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York.
A combined treatment of L-carnitine and L-acetyl-carnitine was found to increase sperm motility, especially in patients with lower baseline levels, in a study in Fertility and Sterility (2004; 81:1578-84).
Genes expressed in benign tissue adjacent to prostate cancer tissue are more similar than previously thought to genes expressed in prostate cancer tissue, according to a study from the University of Pittsburgh.
A combination of the chemotherapy drug gemcitabine (Gemzar) and radiation therapy appears to be efficacious and non-toxic in patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, according to a paper from the University of Michigan.
Lilly ICOS has launched a limited-time offer called "The Cialis Challenge," which offers to pay for a competing erectile dysfunction drug if a patient is not satisfied with tadalafil (Cialis).
The FDA has consolidated three existing areas within the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research to form the Office of Oncology Drug Products.
The California Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA) has cut defendants' medical liability payments to winning plaintiffs by 30%, according to a study by RAND Corp., a nonprofit research organization.
Two investigational drugs-one for stress incontinence and one for overactive bladder-showed positive results in separate presentations at the International Consultation on Incontinence in Monte Carlo, Monaco.
Men whose PSA level increases by more than 2.0 ng/mL during the year prior to a prostate cancer diagnosis may have a relatively high risk of future cancer death even if they undergo radical prostatectomy, according to a recent report in the New England Journal of Medicine (2004; 351:125-35).
The Cleveland Clinic Glickman Urological Institute has established a new Minority Men's Health Center.
Judd W. Moul, MD, has been named chief of the division of urology at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC.
Even though most early-stage prostate cancers have a slow course, the cancers can become more aggressive and lethal in the long term, according to a study by Swedish researchers (JAMA 2004; 291:2713-9).
Chronic prostatitis equals high financial costs, according to research by the Chronic Prostatitis Collaborative Research Network (Arch Intern Med 2004; 164:1231-6).
Prostate cancer survivors are the second largest group of cancer survivors in the United States, following breast cancer survivors as the largest group, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the National Cancer Institute.
Lexington, MA-Indevus Pharmaceuticals announced that trospium chloride (Sanctura) has been approved by the FDA for the treatment of overactive bladder with symptoms of urge incontinence, urgency, and urinary frequency.
We should be cautious in how we proceed in our attempts to advance this technology.
San Francisco--Stem cell therapy can repair the tissue damage that causes urinary incontinence, say Austrian researchers, who used myoblasts and fibroblasts to strengthen patients' rhabdosphincters and urethras and eliminate their symptoms.
Tracing technology can identify the precise location of the phone line your laptop is connected to.
Do you think the three available phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitors-vardenafil hydrochloride (Levitra), tadalafil (Cialis), and sildenafil citrate (Viagra)-are essentially the same, or do they have distinct advantages in the treatment of ED?
The key advantage of the new markers is their ability to identify patients with low-grade 'nuisance' tumors.
GAO cites flaws in Medicare's policy for paying assistants-at-surgery, drawing ire of ACS and others.
Cancer is present in 15% of men with 'normal' PSAs and DREs; 2% have high-grade disease
Panel also suggests appropriate roles for combination therapy and SWL monotherapy
Studies show improved survival, longer time to progression with docetaxel-based therapy
Under our tax laws, the cost of land is a capital expense for which no tax deduction can be taken.
Ureteroscopy offers comparable stone-free rates to shock wave lithotripsy and percutaneous nephrolithotripsy in anomalous kidneys, according to researchers.
Stone burden significantly impacts procedure's stone-free rates and operative times.
