New prostate specific antigen guidance should serve as 'catalyst for change'
January 1st 2012Peter R. Carroll, MD, MPH, discusses the positive and negative aspects of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force prostate cancer screening recommendation and provides a unique perspective on how the urology community should respond.
Denosumab results in less pain interference, according to study
January 1st 2012Pain interference with daily functioning was significantly less in men with castrate-resistant prostate cancer who were treated with the RANK ligand inhibitor denosumab (XGEVA) compared to zoledronic acid (Zometa) as part of a multinational, double-blind, randomized trial.
Reimbursement fights to intensify for urologists and other physicians in 2012
January 1st 2012Urologists and other physicians across the country now find themselves in the midst of a high stakes game of "chicken" on Capitol Hill, with their level of compensation for treating Medicare patients at stake.
Percutaneous nephrolithotomy: Tricks and tips for access and stone removal
January 1st 2012Although percutaneous nephrolithotomy (PCNL) comprises only 4% to 6% of all stone surgeries, it behooves the urologist with an interest in stone disease to be facile in this treatment modality in order to offer patients the most appropriate and effective treatment for their stones.
Gene fusions point to radiation resistance in prostate cancer
January 1st 2012Results of in vitro studies indicate that E-twenty six (ETS) gene fusions in prostate cancer may be a biomarker of radiation resistance and a potential target for reversing radioresistance through treatment with a poly(ADP-ribose)polymerase 1 (PARP1) inhibitor.
Prostate cancer screening should monitor subgroup of young, high-risk men, study suggests
January 1st 2012Almost half of prostate cancer deaths occur among men with PSA levels in the top 10% when assessed at age 44 to 50 years. This small group could benefit from intense surveillance over the ensuing years, whereas in about half of men, three lifetime PSA tests appear sufficient to capture the risk of prostate cancer metastases or death 10 or more years in advance.
Testosterone breakthrough common in patients on androgen deprivation therapy
January 1st 2012Among men treated with curative radiation therapy and neoadjuvant, adjuvant, or concurrent androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), about one-fourth fail to achieve or maintain true castrate levels of testosterone suppression.
Here's to a realistic post-radical prostatectomy potency talk
January 1st 2012Surveys of patients and their partners have found previous numbers regarding post-op potency to be highly unrealistic, and results of recent studies, such as one from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, are closer to reality.
Pre-radical prostatectomy penile length returns by 4 years after surgery
January 1st 2012Researchers found that stretched penile length following radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer decreased until 36 months post-op, then at this point, the process appears to reach a nadir and reverse itself so that by 48 months, stretched length appeared to be fully restored at 5 years post-op.
Urologists face cloud of uncertainty in 2012
December 1st 2011Staring down a possible 27% reimbursement cut, questions about the viability of health care reform, increasing demand for their services, and a shrinking work force, it's less than surprising that urologists are anxious about the prospects for their profession.
Revised accountable care organization program draws early praise
December 1st 2011Urologists and other health care providers now need to consider whether to participate in the federal government's new accountable care organization program, finalized in mid-October as a way to help reduce Medicare costs while improving patient care.
Key stakeholders in urology must work to restore public's faith in doctors
December 1st 2011It's time for organized medicine to realize that our interests are not the same as the pharmaceutical industry's, and while we appreciate all of the advances being made, we as a society cannot afford all of them.