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testosterone therapy does not increase prostate cancer.

Study of men with metabolic syndrome and type II Diabetes finds that diet and exercise alone improved glucose control and metabolic syndrome components by 31%.  The addition of Testosterone therapy increased this % to 81%.

low free Testosterone was shown to be associated with higher reclassification rates in men with prostate Cancer.  Low free Testosterone has been associated with increased prostate cancer incidence via previous studies.

another awesome article dealing with hormone metabolites. Physicians that don't understand metabolites and receptors may be doing more harm than good.   One of the mainstays of the treatment of metastatic prostate disease is androgen deprivation therapy.  This article requires a reassessment of this due to the DHT metabolite 3-beta androstanediol.  This metabolite is produced from DHT production via the enzyme 3beta HSD.  This metabolite binds to ER beta, an estrogen receptor, and inhibits proliferation, migration, promotes adhesion (limits spreading), and stimulates apoptosis.  This is contrast to 3-alpha androstanediol.  Androgen deprivation therapy will decrease 3-beta androstanediol.  This is the likely reason for the increased aggressive prostate cancer found in those men using 5 alpha reductase inhibitors.

Great confusion exists in the medical profession about Testosterone and PSA and the health of the prostate. The conversion of Estrogen, whether E2 or E1, and other variables are responsible for increases in PSA while on Testosterone therapy. This study points out that Estradiol in men stimulates cell line growth of prostate cancer. In contrast, Epitestosterone, an androgen metabolite, has antiandrogen, inhibits this estrogen activity. Epitestosterone exists in an inverse relationship to Estradiol and IGF-1.

One of the largest studies to date on Testosterone therapy in men post radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer.  This study supports the use of Testosterone therapy in this men with close f/u. A higher biochemical recurrence rate was found in the control group versus the treatment group, though there were 4 with biochemical recurrences in the treatment group.

Review, only abstract available--Testosterone therapy does not affect prostate size, intraprostatic Testosterone levels, or prostate cancer progression.  Carcinogenesis of the prostate is not a androgen driven process.  It is an aromatase process.  DHT metabolites can promote tumor growth via Estrogen receptors later, but initiation, via all accounts, occurs through aromatase expression and production of estrogen in the prostate.

testosterone therapy in men with untreated prostate cancer was found to not be associated with cancer progression.  These men were followed over an average 2.5 years.  They concluded that, "these results are consistent with the saturation model i.e.. maximal prostate cancer growth is achieved at low androgen concentrations.

Higher base-line Testosterone levels associated with longer overall survival in men with prostate cancer.  The comparison was 32.7 months with higher T levels versus 22.4 months with lower T levels.  Anemia was also a poor prognostic variable.  Whether exogenous Testosterone therapy will change this is still unclear, but the authors suggest that this should play a role in whether to use salvage hormone therapy.

3-beta androstanediola, a product of 3alpha-HSD from DHT binds to ER beta and down regulates AR in prostate cancer.  This study proposes that the mechanism is via CYP7B1.  CYP7B1 inactivates 3-beta androstanediol.  Interesting, because 3-beta androstanediol is considered "inactive" when compared to 3-alpha androstanediol and its interaction with ER alpha.  

Testosterone therapy is not associated with high-grade prostate cancer in men.

study finds no association between total Testosterone, free Testosterone, and 3alpha-andorstanediol glucuronide and prostate cancer.  Included: no association with SHBG and estrogen to Testosterone ratio.

new study looked at 3 cohorts of Testosterone therapy in men.  The active cohorts found not increased risk of Prostate cancer in men with testosterone therapy at 5 years.

I can only find the abstract of this article.  This article fits with the growing body of evidence that low Testosterone is a poor prognostic factor for men with prostate cancer.  This very short abstract points to using low levels of "free Testosterone" as a biomarker to treat low-risk prostate cancer.

Serum Testosterone levels and intra-prostatic Testosterone levels in men are very different in men with androgen deprivation therapy.  Though there is a 94% serum reduction, intra-prostatic Testosterone levels remain 20-30% higher.  

Testosterone therapy is safe for the prostate.  In fact, low T is associated with increased risk of prostate cancer.  

Study finds that increased free Testosterone is associated with increased incidence of prostate cancer.  Higher Total Testosterone was associated with lung cancer and androgens were not associated with colorectal cancer incidence.  That being said, the evaluation of androgens only is a significant limiting factor of this study.  

no change in prostate cancer progression in man with prostate cancer on testosterone therapy.    Additionally, the PSA decreased.  The follow up was 2 years.  Two negatives: first, this was an observation study of one man, second,  was that analysis was via serum and I don't see that aromatase activity was monitored.  

This article summarizes it all.  With age, Testosterone declines and estrogen production, through elevated aromatase activity, increases.  This results in a decline in the Testosterone:estradiol ratio.  This has been clearly implicated in both benign and disease states of the prostate.  The evidence points to aromatase activity and estrogen in the prostate to poor prostate health.  Additionally, this article points out the impact of ER alpha and ER beta on the translation of the message of Estrogen.

a large collaborative analysis finds no association between ANY sex hormones and prostate cancer.