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PROSTATE CANCER NEWSLETTER - SEPTEMBER 2008

Men with high serum lycopene levels appear to be at lower risk for prostate cancer than men with low levels, according to a report published in the June 1st issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Previous studies investigating the association between carotenoid levels and prostate cancer risk have yielded inconsistent results,lead author Dr. Tara M. Vogt, from the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland, and colleagues note.

To clarify the relationship, Dr. Vogt's team analyzed the serum levels of individual carotenoids in 209 men with prostate cancer and in 228 control subjects. The researchers were also interested in determining why prostate cancer rates are higher in blacks than in whites.To this end, the case and control groups were constructed to contain comparable
numbers of black and white men.

Men with the highest serum lycopene levels were 35% less likely to develop prostate cancer than those with the lowest levels (p = 0.09).For aggressive disease, the difference was even more dramatic with a riskreduction of 63% (p = 0.04).

In contrast, intake of other carotenoids was tied to an increased risk of prostate cancer. However, none of these associations were statistically significant.
All of the carotenoid/prostate cancer risk patterns were similar in black and white men, the authors note.

However, as a group, serum lycopene levels were significantly lower in blacks than in whites. Therefore, this could help explain the racial disparity in prostate cancer rates.
These findings provide support for the protective role of lycopene in prostate carcinogenesis.

At James Cook University Hospital, Middlesbrough, UK 60 patients with prostate cancer and on LHRH agonist treatment (median age 74 years, range 58-83) consented to weekly AA (auricular acupuncture) for 10 weeks.

The validated 'Measure Yourself Concernsand Well-being' questionnaire (a six-point scale to assess symptom severity) was used to assess concerns and well-being before and after treatment. All men completed the treatment with no adverse events recorded, apart
from transient exacerbation of symptoms in two men; 95% of patients reported
a decrease in the severity of symptoms.

Sexually transmissible infections (STI) have been variably associated with increased risks of prostate cancer, largely in case-control studies

A large prospective study of Wen-Yi Huang, Richard Hayes, Ruth Pfeiffer, Raphael P. Viscidi, Francis K. Lee, Yun F. Wang, Douglas Reding, Denise Whitby, John R. Papp and Charles S. Rabkin about prostate cancer shows no consistent association with specific Sexually transmissible infections STIs and a borderline association with any versus none.

Whether a shared response or correlated infection not directly measured underlies the weak association requires further study.

Coloplast announced the first U.S. patient training with its new Titan® inflatable penile prosthesis with One-Touch Release (OTR) pump for men with erectile dysfunction who do not respond to traditional ED drug therapy.

A majority of prostate cancer survivors who have undergone prostate removal surgery suffer the inability to have an erection due to nerve damage. A penile implant may be a viable alternative for these men because it is suggested that only 10 percent of men who undergo a non-nerve sparing radical prostatectomy surgery can benefit from oral ED therapy.

Risk of Prostate, Breast and Colorectal Cancer After Skin Cancer Diagnosis. Ultraviolet radiation is the major cause of skin cancer, but promotes vitamin D synthesis, and vitamin D has been inversely related to the risk of several common cancersincluding prostate, breast and colorectum.

Levi F, Randimbison L, Te VC, Conconi MM and La Vecchia C. computed the incidence of prostate, breast and colorectal cancer following skin cancer using the datasets of the Swiss cancer Registries of Vaud and Neuchatel. Their findings, based on a population with a long tradition of systematichistologic examination of all surgically treated skin lesions,did not support the hypothesis that prostate, breast and colorectal cancer risk is decreased following skin cancer.