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Prostate Centers of America said its first urologist-owned LLC joint venture using photoselective vaporization of the prostate (PVP) had reached profitability.

Even though men age 56 years and older continue to receive the majority of sildenafil citrate (Viagra) prescriptions, use in men ages 18 to 46 years increased 312% from 1998 to 2002, according to a study in the International Journal of Impotence Research (2004 16:313-8.)

A combined genome-wide linkage analysis of 426 families from four existing hereditary prostate cancer study populations found strong evidence of prostate cancer linkage at chromosome region 17q22, according to a study reported in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (2004; 96:1240-7).

A new study has been launched to compare long-term benefits and risks of three treatments for BPH-transurethral needle ablation, transurethral microwave thermotherapy, and a combination drug regimen of alfuzosin (Uroxatral) and finasteride (Proscar), the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases announced.

The addition of a short course of androgen suppression therapy following radiation therapy improves survival in men with localized prostate cancer compared with radiation therapy alone, according to researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston.

Washington--Legislation designed to help improve patient safety by reducing mistakes in health care settings stands a good chance of winning final approval by Congress before lawmakers adjourn for the November election.

Terminating a patient is more complicated than just refusing to see him or her again.

Salaries, fees, bonuses, taxable fringe benefits, pensions, and retirement pay are subject to withholding if paid as compensation for services.

At some point in our profession, we may want to send videos demonstrating certain procedures to our colleagues, or we may want to include a video with a study that is being published in an online medical journal, where visitors can view the technique in real time rather than try to make sense of an illustration or photograph.

CMS estimates that Medicare payments to urologists will decrease 13% in 2005.

New Orleans--Treatment with the endothelin receptor antagonist atrasentan (Xinlay) significantly delays time to progression in patients with metastatic, hormone-refractory prostate cancer, according to a meta-analysis of pooled data from two large trials.

San Francisco--As a salvage for locally recurrent prostate cancer after failed radiation, targeted cryoablation of the prostate (TCAP) provides a "significantly better overall quality of life" than salvage radical prostatectomy, said Aaron E. Katz, MD, at the AUA annual meeting.

San Francisco--Once infection has been ruled out as a cause of a man's pelvic pain, chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS) is the diagnosis. Although a symptom and problem index is available to help clinicians and researchers follow the patient's progress, there is no objective test that helps clinch a diagnosis, define the extent of disease, or measure its progression or regression.

San Francisco--A history of prostatitis is apparently linked to the development of prostate cancer, although it is unclear whether this is simply a compelling correlation or a potential etiology, according to the authors of a multicenter study presented at the AUA annual meeting.

San Francisco--An investigational selective alpha-1 adrenoreceptor blocker improves both the obstructive symptoms associated with BPH and symptoms associated with overactive bladder, according to a Japanese study presented at the AUA annual meeting here.

San Francisco--Interim results from two multi-national European studies show that once-daily treatment with a uroselective alpha-blocker reduces lower urinary tract symptoms and may benefit sexual function. The drug, alfuzosin (Uroxatral), appears to be efficacious in men with co-morbidities such as hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes, and does not seem to significantly interact with medications for those conditions, according to two separate studies presented at the AUA annual meeting here.

San Francisco--Phytotherapy with the saw palmetto extract Serenoa repens (Permixon) appears to be more effective than an alpha-blocker in relieving severe BPH, European researchers report. Their finding is based on a study of nearly 700 patients with symptomatic BPH who received either the saw palmetto extract or the alpha-blocker tamsulosin (Flomax).

San Francisco--Androgens, estrogens, and the development of BPH appear to be related, according to a study presented at the AUA annual meeting this year, but the nature of those relationships and the underlying mechanisms remain unknown.

New York--New disease registries aimed at collecting real-world data on the management of two common urologic conditions in men-BPH and rising PSA following initial treatment for prostate cancer-are currently in the patient recruitment phase. The registries will help to quantify the wide range of practice patterns and outcomes that have not been previously examined, say urologists involved in the initiatives.

San Francisco--Serum BPSA, an antigen enriched in the nodular transition zone tissue in BPH, appears to be a better predictor of clinically significant prostate enlargement than PSA or free PSA. This finding and complementary data, by researchers from the Scott Department of Urology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, lay the groundwork for further study that will determine the antigen's potential to distinguish between BPH and prostate cancer.

New Orleans--The amount and velocity of change in PSA during the first few months of chemotherapy can independently predict patients who will survive, according to data from the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) and Cancer and Leukemia Group B. The results are among many recent findings begging FDA consideration in the debate about how PSA measurements can be used to more quickly approve prostate cancer drugs.

Hopefully critical analysis of the MTOPS samples will yield useful biomarkers within the next couple of years.

San Francisco--Surgeon experience is an independent predictor of PSA progression in men undergoing radical prostatectomy, but among high-volume surgeons (those who performed more than 100 procedures) operating in a single institution, the individual surgeon alone is also a significant prognostic factor, according to a study by researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York.

Nomograms are now available to predict the recurrence of prostate and renal cell cancer, among other conditions, and their applications may eventually expand. In this exclusive Urology Times interview, Michael W. Kattan, PhD, discusses the development of these prediction models and their current and future use. Dr. Kattan is currently chairman of the department of biostatistics and epidemiology at the Cleveland Clinic. Much of his work on nomograms was conducted at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, where he was an outcomes research scientist. The interview was conducted by UT Editorial Consultant Robert C. Flanigan, MD, professor and chairman of the department of urology, Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood, IL.

Book examines impact of urologic diseases in U.S.

The procedure should be of a durationand complexity that will permit the patient to recover and be discharged.

New Orleans--Data from a randomized clinical trial show that long-term treatment with the bisphosphonate agent zoledronic acid (Zometa) halved the rate of skeletal events in patients with advanced prostate cancer and bone metastases.

Shrewsbury, United Kingdom--Over the past 30 years, the incidence of bladder cancer has increased almost 60% among females in the United Kingdom. But this upward trend does not appear to be related to changes in smoking habits, as researchers from Royal Shrewsbury Hospital had previously thought.

San Francisco--Despite its steep learning curve, laparoscopic radical prostatectomy is a safe, efficacious option that is feasible for routine use in specialized departments, results from a large series of laparoscopic radical prostatectomy procedures suggest.

San Francisco--Elevated PSA levels in men who have chronic bacterial prostatitis return to normal after antimicrobial treatment with either levofloxacin (Levaquin) or ciprofloxacin (Cipro), according to researchers from Northwestern University and Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical.