Wednesday Sep 24, 2008 (foodconsumer.org) -- Some studies
on hormone therapy and prostate cancer were presented at the American Society
for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology's 50th Annual Meeting in Boston.
Cited below are a few.
Study 1 - Radiation added to hormone therapy betters
survival for men with prostate cancer
The study showed that men with locally advanced prostate
cancer who received radiation treatment in addition to anti-androgen hormone
therapy were 50 percent less likely to die from the disease than those who received
only hormone therapy.
The study was presented September 22, 2008, at the
American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology's 50th Annual Meeting
in Boston.
Locally advanced prostate cancer is cancer that has
already grown close to the border or outside the prostate gland and into
neighboring tissue, but not yet spread into lymph nodes or to other organs.
Anti-androgen hormone therapy is to block the stimulating
effect of testosterone on the prostate cancer cells to shrink the tumor and
slow its growth.
Radiation therapy is to
direct radiation accurately to the prostate daily to kill cancer cells.
Anders Widmark, M.D., lead author of the study and a
professor in radiation oncology at Umea University in Umea, Sweden and
colleagues tested two therapies in 880 patients with locally advanced prostate
cancer between Feb, 1996 and Dec. 2002.
They found 18 percent of patients who underwent hormone
therapy alone died compared to nine percent of those who received both hormone
and radiation therapies. And the life quality at four years after treatments
was reportedly the same for both groups.
Study 2 - Hormone therapy prior to brachytherapy shortens
life for older prostate cancer patients
The study found me at 70 or older with early stage
prostate cancer were 20 percent more likely to die if they were treated with
hormone therapy prior to treatment with radiation seed implants or
brachytherapy than those who received radiation therapy alone.
Hormone therapy called neoadjuvant hormone therapy has
negative effects on survival.
It helps
shrink the prostate or slow down the growth of prostate cancer by lowering the
level of male hormones (androgens), but does not improve patients' odds of
survival, according to a press release by astro.org.
"Our study shows that for men over 70 with
early-stage prostate cancer, androgen deprivation therapy as a form of
treatment may do more harm than good," said Amy Fox, M.D., lead author of
the study and a radiation oncology resident at the Harvard Radiation Oncology
Program in Boston.
"In older patients, the risks of androgen
deprivation need to be carefully weighed by doctors when designing the proper
treatment plan."
The cohort study of 1,709 men aged 70 or older with
localized prostate cancer compared the two therapies, brachytherapy alone and
hormone therapy plus brachytherapy between 1991 and 2005.
The finding was contradictory to some studies presented
at the same conference.
Study 3 - Hormone therapy should be given immediately if
PSA rises quickly after radiation therapy.
The study suggests that men with early stage prostate
cancer should be given hormone therapy immediately if their PSA level rises and
doubles within 6 six months after radiation treatment.
The study was conducted by Eric Horwitz, M.D., acting
chairman and clinical director of the radiation oncology department at Fox
Chase and presented at the same conference.
Hormone therapy called androgen deprivation therapy is
used to shrink the prostate and slow the growth of the cancer, but carries a
risk of side effects.
"While hormone therapy can have side effects such as
hot flashes, decreased libido and osteoporosis, it can help prevent the cancer
from spreading to the bones, causing pain and leading to an earlier death from
the disease," Horwitz said.
Early studies showed if the doubling time of PSA is 12
months or shorter, prostate cancer is at an increased risk of spreading to
other tissue and organs and hormone therapy would be beneficial in these cases.
The researchers used a new formula and found that the action
needs to be taken only if the doubling time is as short as 6 months.
"Men whose PSA rises, but does so over a longer
period of time may not benefit from hormones," Horwitz said.
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