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In conjunction with September as prostate cancer awareness month, Us TOO International is launching its nationwide “SEA Blue” campaign on behalf of prostate cancer patients and their families.

Although previous studies suggest that high plasma concentrations of carotenoids, retinol, or tocopherols may reduce the risk of prostate cancer, recent research from Europe showed no associations between these micronutrients and overall prostate cancer risk. However, when study subjects were stratified by disease stage, both plasma lycopene and the sum of all measured plasma carotenoids were associated with reduced risk of advanced disease only.

The monoclonal antibody bavituximab significantly shrank resistant human prostate tumors in mice when added to a standard regimen of androgen deprivation and docetaxel (Taxotere), according to researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.

More prostate cancers were detected among men who were screened every 2 years than among men screened every 4 years, according to a study published in an online edition of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (2007; 99:1296-303). But the shorter time between screenings did not reduce the number of aggressive cancers found between the scheduled screening tests.

Combination treatment with the 5-alpha-reductase inhibitor dutasteride (Avodart) and the alpha-blocker tamsulosin (Flomax) provides significantly greater urinary symptom improvement for men with BPH than either therapy alone does over 24 months, according to a study presented at the recent meeting of the Société Internationale d’Urologie in Paris.

Finasteride (Proscar) appears to raise the odds that physicians will find fast-growing prostate cancers early, suggests a study from the Southwest Oncology Group.

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Sildenafil citrate (Viagra) may elevate the release of reproductive hormone, according to the authors of an animal study from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. The finding is potentially the first sign of a chemical means by which erectile dysfunction drugs may physically affect the body beyond heightening blood flow to sexual organs.

Sandra Vassos has been named the new executive director of the AUA Foundation.

Surgeons at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, effectively removed a patient's kidney by conducting an atypical nephrectomy, known as “single keyhole access” surgery, via the umbilicus. This marked the first such surgery that involved a kidney, and it required one incision.

A cancer patient advocacy group said it will rally at FDA headquarters this month to ask FDA to reconsider its “flawed” decision on sipuleucel-T (Provenge), a form of immunotherapy under investigation for the treatment of late-stage prostate cancer.

GPC Biotech AG has retracted its new drug application for satraplatin, which was submitted for rapid approval to treat hormone-refractory prostate cancer patients who had experienced unsuccessful previous chemotherapy.

Sexual dysfunction is common in patients with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), regardless of the type of CP/CPPS they have, according to two recent studies.

The Prostate Cancer Education Council, a nonprofit consortium of expert physicians, health educators, scientists, and prostate health advocates, is teaming with former Detroit Pistons basketball coach Chuck Daly to spread the word on prostate health issues. BPH Game Plan Starts with U, the culmination of their efforts, is a recently launched national initiative to promote screenings and to raise awareness of BPH.

Levels of five androgen receptors in prostatectomy specimens appear to predict which men will progress in their disease and which will respond to androgen deprivation therapy.

Prostate cancer patients younger than 60 years who had healthy erectile function (EF) prior to low doses of brachytherapy have a strong likelihood of sustaining long-term EF, according to a study by radiation oncologists and urologists at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

The therapeutic role of phosphodiesterase type-5 inhibitors could expand to include some patients with BPH and lower urinary tract symptoms, according to findings from two studies presented at the AUA annual meeting in Anaheim, CA.

An immune molecule potentially responsible for the onset, return, and progression of prostate cancer has been discovered by researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. The report on the B7-H3 molecule appeared in Cancer Research (2007; 67:7893-900).

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) can cause a lot of discomfort, as well as frustration resulting from the inability to urinate normally. For some men, it can also cause emotional stress. Getting the facts right about BPH can help alleviate the emotional stress.

PSA doubling time, defined as the length of time it takes for a PSA to double based on an exponential growth pattern, and PSA velocity, the rate of change of PSA over time, have been identified in large retrospective studies as strong prognostic indicators at the time of diagnosis prior to prostatectomy in patients with prostate cancer.

Similar to patients with other chronic pain conditions, men with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome have evidence of a hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-axis abnormality.

Sexual dysfunction is common in patients with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS), regardless of the type of CP/CPPS they have.

Several novel biopsychosocial factors have been identified as significant independent predictors of lower quality of life in patients with chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome, according to an analysis of data collected from men enrolled in the National Institutes of Health's Chronic Prostatitis Cohort Study.

Researchers suggest that urologists consider PSA and PSA velocity values within a larger context when deciding whether to screen an older patient.

Initiating androgen deprivation therapy in men with prostate cancer significantly increases the risk of incident diabetes, and that effect occurs within a relatively short time frame.

Data in study points to increased plasma volume as the key to the lower PSA concentrations generally observed in obese men.

A panel of urologists, oncologists, research specialists, and a statistician began meeting 5 years ago with the goal of updating the AUA guidelines for treating localized prostate cancer, last issued in 1995. After reviewing thousands of papers, the group released the updated guidelines at the AUA annual meeting in May.

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While there is no specific code for an intra-operative consult, one can bill a consultation code if the criteria are met.