Originally published August 2 2005
New clues in prostate cancer therapy
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Two new studies could help men and their doctors better treat prostate cancer.
A crucial difference, the two new studies suggest, is how fast blood levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) go up.
His team looked at whether prediagnosis changes in PSA predicted a man's risk of dying from prostate cancer.
The findings confirmed the results of an earlier study of men who underwent prostate surgery.
"These studies show that looking at changes in PSA are more important than a single value," Freedland tells WebMD.
As prostate cancer cells increase in number, blood PSA levels rise.
But PSA levels in and of themselves aren't a reliable indicator of cancer.
"There has been controversy over what is the best use of PSA as a screening tool and what is the best use of the test as a tool to guide treatment," D'Amico says.
"Our study shows that men who experience a two-point rise in PSA in the year preceding a diagnosis of prostate cancer --- despite a low level of PSA and despite a biopsy showing a supposedly 'favorable' prostate cancer --- have more aggressive cancer and need more aggressive treatment to cure it."
Men whose PSA levels rose more than two points in a year had a 12-fold higher risk of dying from prostate cancer than men whose PSA levels rose less quickly.
Gleason score is based on what a cancer looks like under the microscope.
For example, the very worst prediction would be a man whose PSA reappeared in less than three years, whose PSA level doubled in less than three months, and who had a Gleason score of more than 8.
Such men have a 51 percent chance of surviving for five years, a 1 percent chance of surviving for 10 years, and less than a 1 percent chance of surviving for 15 years.
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