Prostate Cancer Prevention
Reduce the Risk of Developing the Most Common Malignancy Among Men
Apr 21, 2009
According to the National Cancer Institute, prostate cancer is the most common malignancy in the United States among men and causes over 28,000 deaths every year. Men who have a first degree relative that are diagnosed with prostate cancer have a much higher risk of developing the disease themselves. Other risk factors include age, race and nationality.
Prostate cancer is most often found in the localized stage, however, approximately 9% of prostate cancers are not found until they are in the advanced stage and incurable. While there is no cure for advanced prostate cancer, recent advances in treatment have allowed the disease to be controlled for long periods of time. Early detection of prostate cancer is critical if a cure is to be achieved and any method of delaying or preventing the onset of prostate cancer is desirable.
Finasteride Lowers Risk of Prostate Cancer
Clinical trials have evaluated the use of many modalities for prostate cancer prevention including drug therapy and vitamin supplementation. So far only one drug has been identified that is capable of preventing the occurrence of prostate cancer. In the prostate cancer prevention trial (PCPT), finasteride was found to reduce cancer occurrence by almost 25%. This drug, also known as Propecia® or Proscar®, prevents the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone, an androgen receptor agonist that plays a major role in the progression of prostate cancers. While finasteride does help prevent this form of cancer, it is currently only prescribed to men who have a very high risk of developing the disease. As more research is conducted it will become clearer which patients will benefit the most from taking this drug.
Supplements Do Not Prevent Prostate Cancer
For many years, there has been a large amount of anecdotal evidence suggesting that vitamins and other dietary supplements are able to preclude the development of prostate cancer. For example, past retrospective studies authored by O. Heinonen and L. Clark had provided some evidence that vitamin E and selenium could provide a benefit in reducing prostate cancer occurrence. The Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial (SELECT) was launched to truly evaluate the efficacy of these supplements. The trial found that supplementation with vitamin E, selenium, or the combination of the two did not provide men any advantage with regard to prostate cancer diagnosis. Doctors now advise against using these agents as a prostate cancer preventative.
Maintenance of a healthy diet and weight is still a good way to lower the risk of developing prostate cancer since obesity has been linked to an increased risk of developing the disease. There are also many other supplements that may prove to be beneficial in preventing prostate cancer. Currently, trials are recruiting participants to evaluate the roles of fish oil, low-fat diet, soy protein, and lycopene in prostate cancer prevention. Healthy men that may be at a higher risk of developing this disease, or have an interest in contributing to research aimed at reducing the occurrence of this wide-spread cancer may consider enrolling in these studies.
References:
Heinonen OP, Albanes D, Virtamo J, et al. Prostate cancer and supplementation with alpha-tocopherol and beta-carotene: Incidence and mortality in a controlled trial. Journal of the National Cancer Institute 1998; 90(6):440-446.
Clark LC, Combs GF Jr., Turnbull BW, et al. Effects of selenium supplementation for cancer prevention in patients with carcinoma of the skin. A randomized controlled trial. Nutritional Prevention of Cancer Study Group. Journal of the American Medical Association 1996;276(24):1957-1963.
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