FOR years, research on prostate cancer has sought an approach to screening that is more individualized than a one-size-fits-all measurement of the level of prostate-specific antigen in a man’s blood. These efforts are now paying off. That’s why it’s time to re-evaluate the nation’s current approach to prostate cancer. Even though we anticipate 221,000 new…
The 2015 update of the guidelines for prostate cancer from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) marks the 20th annual edition of the guidance. The update contains three major changes, which are related to imaging, molecular testing, and the systemic treatment of castration-resistant disease, said James Mohler, MD, who chairs the NCCN panel for prostate…
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends against PSA (prostate specific antigen) screening for prostate cancer. The task force currently gives PSA screening a grade D, meaning that there is moderate or high certainty that the PSA test has no benefit or that the harms outweigh the benefits. This recommendation was first issued in…
Australian researchers have discovered that men with incurable prostate cancer, but without symptoms, who received immediate hormone treatment on the TROG 03.06 (TOAD) clinical trial, had an increase in survival over those who delayed treatment – with 80% still alive after six years, compared to 65% of men for whom treatment was delayed until they…
For the first time, a large randomized trial has suggested that overall survival is improved by the addition of adjuvant chemotherapy to androgen suppression and radiotherapy in men with localized, high-risk, hormone-sensitive prostate cancer. Docetaxel has been used to treat metastatic hormone-resistant prostate cancer for a number of years, and this new study—RTOG 0521—suggests that…
Too many men are getting the all-clear for prostate cancer when in fact they have the disease, say doctors, who are calling for an overhaul of testing techniques. Professor Stephen Langley, a prostate cancer expert, blames the misdiagnoses on inaccurate biopsies. Under current guidelines from NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence), men with…
A central challenge in diagnosing and treating prostate cancer is distinguishing fast from slow, aggressive from indolent. Consider the experience of Gerald Alexander. A former Air Force surgical service specialist who completed several tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, Alexander was preparing to retire from the military and make a transition to teaching high…
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Hans Schmitthenner, a research scientist at Rochester Institute of Technology, hopes to make detecting prostate cancer — the second leading cause of cancer deaths among men — less of a guessing game. Non-cancerous cells as well as cancerous cells can produce elevated PSA levels in the test for prostate-specific antigens commonly used…
Genomic Health, Inc.(GHDX – Analyst Report) recently declared that Medicare contractor, Palmetto GBA, has issued a draft local coverage determination (LCD) for its Oncotype DX prostate cancer test. The draft LCD recommends coverage and reimbursement of the Oncotype DX prostate cancer test for applicable Medicare patients across the U.S. This should encourage the identification of…
International study of advanced prostate cancer genome finds abundance of potential targets for drug therapy The first major effort to canvas the genomic landscape of advanced prostate cancer has revealed that many patients may carry some type of genetic abnormality that can be targeted with existing or potential drugs. The finding, reported today by a…