Pre-Radiation Testosterone Levels & PCa Aggressiveness

[pjoshea13]

New Canadian study below [1].

"... a Gleason score ≥8 was associated with a lower likelihood of having a normal (≥8 nmol/L) testosterone level (OR = 0.51 ..."

Put another way, men with GS of 8-10 were more likely to have a T below 231 ng/gL.

-Patrick

[1] pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/326...

Andrologia

. 2020 Jul 6;e13731. doi: 10.1111/and.13731. Online ahead of print.

The Relationship Between Pre-Radiation Therapy Testosterone Levels and Prostate Cancer Aggressiveness

Daniel Taussky 1 2 , Guila Delouya 1 2 , Carole Lambert 1 2 , Jean-Paul Bahary 1 2 , Fred Saad 2 3

Affiliations collapse

Affiliations

1 Department of Radiation Oncology, Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM), Montreal, QC, Canada.

2 Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CRCHUM), Montreal, QC, Canada.

3 Division of Urology, Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada.

PMID: 32628305 DOI: 10.1111/and.13731

Abstract

We investigated whether there is an association between testosterone levels and prostate cancer aggressiveness in patients treated with radiation therapy who underwent a prostatectomy or prostate radiotherapy (EBRT). A total of 380 patients who received primary or post-operative radiotherapy were identified. At the time of radiotherapy, baseline testosterone levels and body mass index (BMI) measurements were available. On multivariate analysis (MVA), higher prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels were predictive of testosterone ≥10.4 (OR = 1.3, p = .04) and testosterone ≥12.0 nmol/L (OR = 1.3, p = .04). Patients with a Gleason score ≥8 were more likely to have testosterone <8 nmol/L than patients with a lower score (31% vs. 20%, p = .043). On univariate analysis, a Gleason score ≥8 was associated with a lower likelihood of having a normal (≥8 nmol/L) testosterone level (OR = 0.51, 95% CI: 0.3-0.9, p = .02), and on MVA adjusted for post-surgical versus primary EBRT and BMI (≥30 kg/m2 ), the Gleason score lost its statistical significance (p = .09). While higher PSA levels are associated with higher testosterone levels, the interaction between Gleason score and testosterone is unclear and merits further study.

[ck722]

Interesting but what does this mean? I am confused.

[pjoshea13 in reply to ck722]

It adds to evidence from other observational studies that indicate that low testosterone might be a risk factor for more aggressive PCa.

I think it means that young men with low T should act to correct that - as well as not-so-young men who do not have PCa.

-Patrick

[Boywonder56 in reply to pjoshea13]

My t was 140....did t replacement therapy....for 10 yrs....psa to....12 ...ductatal stg 4 pc...with met 2016....guess i fit the bill....

[No17]

Feels weird as I am possibly one of the patients in the sample of this study. This is my care unit, my onco-urologist and my onco-radiologist. I had RP with post operative radiotherapy, high Gleason (9) and relatively low T (4.3)...

I understand that they simply established a statically significant correlation between low T and hi Gleason score, and that looking into it could be a potential future research.

My modest contribution to the advancement of science!

[pjoshea13 in reply to No17]

They write about you in the full text. LOL - just kidding.

But it must feel weird. Did you sign a consent form?

-Patrick

[No17 in reply to pjoshea13]

Yes I had given consent. And every time I am over there, I have a few blood and urine tests as part of a broader profiling study. So I might be featured one day ! lol !

[j-o-h-n in reply to No17]

Signing autographs yet?

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Friday 07/10/2020 12:57 PM DST

[No17 in reply to j-o-h-n]

It's all on e-bay....some knock offs unfortunatly...

[j-o-h-n in reply to No17]

I ordered 17 of them..... unfortunately I had to use PayPal..........So I used one of the stolen cards that I have...

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Friday 07/10/2020 2:23 PM DST

[Hawk56]

My T was 287 (below normal range) when I was diagnosed in Jan 14, TRUS biopsy was GS 4+5, surgery pathology report put it at 4+4. I was 57 at the time.

Flash forward after surgery, SRT then a combined regimen of ADT, chemotherapy and PLN radiation from Jan 17-May 18 my T in Oct 18 was 135 and in Feb 19 was 482.

My PSA remains undetectable since I finished my last Lupron in May 18.

Who knows, lots of discussion about T and PCa.

[pjoshea13 in reply to Hawk56]

Dr. Patrick Walsh reported over 20 years ago that T rises after surgery. Seems that cancer within the prostate is able to affect T production. PCa is a wily foe. I have great respect for it.

-Patrick

[tsim]

Meanwhile, T levels are dropping in men globally over the last several decades. Lots of theories, obesity, general health, ubiquitous use of herbicides, must do what we can to keep those levels up.