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The human microbiome links to prostate cancer risk and treatment (Review)

pca2004 profile image
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New study below [1].

 Abstract.

Prostate cancer (Pca) is the second most common

cancer type worldwide. Microorganisms colonized in different

body parts may affect the development/progression and

treatment of Pca through direct or indirect interactions. The

composition of microorganisms in different colonization sites

and their effects on Pca may differ. In recent years, several

studies have focused on the differences in the microbiota of

patients with Pca, and dysbiosis may affect the inflammatory

status, hormone levels and microbial metabolites leading to

Pca progression. However, little is known about the interaction

between Pca treatment and microorganisms; for example,

how androgen deprivation therapy and androgen receptor

axis‑targeting therapeutics for Pca affect microbiota composition

and metabolism, and how the microbiota affects treatment

response in patients with Pca remain to be understood. The

present review explored the current studies on the relevance

of microbiota to Pca progression and treatment to provide

direction for future microbiome‑Pca research. Due to the

complexity of the potential interconnections between Pca and

the microbiota, further investigation is critical.

 1. Introduction

The human body contains microbiota, which plays a vital

role in health and disease; the number of microorganisms

is estimated to be ~1013, and constitutes 1‑3% of the body

mass (1). Microbiota is in a symbiotic equilibrium with the

host. Environmental factors including age, diet, disease and

drug metabolism can lead to microbial imbalance, which can

induce inflammatory responses or lead to drug resistance (2,3).

Disruption of this equilibrium also has an impact on cancer;

the microbiota can influence every stage of cancer as well as

the therapeutic process through direct and indirect actions, the

main mechanisms of which may be associated with the metabolites

produced by microorganisms and the inflammatory state

they cause (4,5). There are also beneficial effects of microbiota

on cancer treatment, as confirmed by recent clinical trials on

fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) in combination with

immunotherapy for cancer treatment, potentially opening up

new targets for cancer treatment (6).

Prostate cancer (Pca) is the second most common

cancer type globally, with nearly 1.4 million new cases and

~0.4 million Pca‑associated mortalities worldwide in 2020 (7).

Radical surgery and radiotherapy continue to be the options

for treating localized diseases. Androgen deprivation therapy

(ADT), hormone therapy and chemotherapy are also effective

in male patients with Pca (8). However, certain patients

progress to castration‑resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) within

2‑3 years after starting ADT treatment, resulting in a poor

prognosis (9). However, there is still a lack of effective tests

to distinguish between indolent and resistant Pca at an early

stage. Thus, there is an urgent need for improved risk stratification

tools to avoid overtreatment and under‑treatment of

aggressive Pca (10).

Next‑generation sequencing (NGS) and metagenomics are

expected further to establish the link between microbiota and

 Pca, opening up new areas of Pca research (11). Microbiota may

not only be a stratification factor to predict risk, but may also

 provide new options for treating Pca by clarifying the interaction

between cancer and microbiota (12). Therefore, understanding

the link between the microbiome and Pca is critical.

It has been proposed that the microbiota may have a direct

or indirect effect on Pca tumorigenesis and progression.

However, further research is needed to provide definitive

evidence in this area (13). In the present review, focus was

addressed on the effect of prostate cancer treatment on the

microbiome and the scope of the microbiome was expanded

to include the entire body, not just the intestinal microbiome.

The present review provides a detailed overview of the current

research on the role of human microorganisms in the risk,

progression and treatment of Pca from the aspects of direct

and indirect mechanisms.

  2. Microbiota and Pca (see paper for details)

 3. Conclusions and future directions

The present review aimed to clarify the direction of subsequent

research by providing the current state of research

in Pca and microbiota research. An increasing number of

studies have been conducted to analyze the correlation

between microbiota and Pca. Microbiota is recognized

as one of the potentially critical factors influencing Pca

development/progression. However, there is still a lack of

adequate understanding of the mechanisms of microbiota

at different locations in the development/progression and

treatment of Pca. Recent studies have demonstrated that,

compared with healthy individuals, there may be differences

in the abundance of microbiota in patients with Pca, whether

in the urethra, prostate tissue or intestine. Nevertheless,

the research provided in the present review often presents

conflicting information, emphasizing the need for further

study in this area using a standardized approach.

Research on the association between urinary and prostate

microbiota and Pca has progressed slowly. Previous

studies suggest that epithelial structural disruption and

inflammatory states leading to colonization may be potential

mechanisms for Pca progression. However, this mechanism

is not yet understood. Gut microbiota may act indirectly

through different microbiota metabolites and sex hormone

levels, and influence Pca progression and treatment (Fig. 2).

Understanding how gut microbiota affects Pca will help to

stratify in an improved manner the risk of Pca progression

and develop new treatments. The impact of the microbiome

on cancer (including Pca) treatment is bilateral. On one hand,

the microbiome can significantly influence the treatment of

cancer, while cancer treatment can in turn shape the composition

of the microbiome. As therapeutic tools continue to

evolve, particularly ATT treatment for Pca, it is critical

to explore and understand the complex underlying links

between Pca and the microbiome.

-Patrick

[1] google.com/search?q=%22The+...

click on the Spandidos link for the Adobe doc.

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NPfisherman profile image
NPfisherman

With all the various factors involved with PCa-- hormones, cholesterol, inflammation, and genetic mutations (4 Horsemen), it makes me want to seek out an AI for planning purposes/ strategy, if I have another vacation...

Can a plan encompass so many factors??

One of the things I have wondered in regard to tumor microbiome is whether the vaccine Gardasil might be beneficial to PCa patients because of the fact that HP 16 and HP18 are frequently present in the PCa tumor microbiome.. I guess others wonder as well...

nfcr.org/blog/researchers-u...

Was the Dukoral effective in PCa because of a resulting improvement in microbiome post injection??

Things to ponder..

Don Pescado

cujoe profile image
cujoe

I'm beginning to wonder if the microbiome might turn out like the genome; i.e., at first bush the source for cures/treatments for innumerable diseases - until the discovery that the epigenome really runs the show.

Might we find that we have an epibiome for the microbiome. There is already a biomed startup with that name . . .

flgpartners.com/directorshi...

prnewswire.com/news-release...

NPfisherman profile image
NPfisherman in reply to cujoe

DOTAW,

Genetics, epigenetics, microbiome, epibiome, new cellular targets, immune system stimulators, new radioligands, the first AR Degrader (VERU-111) may be approved by late 2024... 4th generation AR...

It's like I keep saying...

The Science is Coming !!! and it gives us...HOPE !!

Don Pescado

MSTI profile image
MSTI in reply to NPfisherman

Yes, they are knocking on many doors but it seems that there are too many doors after doors. We have to keep hope anyway.

NPfisherman profile image
NPfisherman in reply to MSTI

There can never be too much knowledge in regards to PCa.. The fact that more doors are being opened is how the answer will be found..Hope is a good thing...perhaps the best of things... as Andy said in Shawshank Redemption...

rocket09 profile image
rocket09

It may be a good idea to consume yogurt , kefir and fermented vegetables such as sour kraut. Won't hurt.

cujoe profile image
cujoe in reply to rocket09

RocketMan, Yes, but only if you do it with the min RDA of fiber. (To feed the production of the short-chained fatty acids needed to feed the good gut bugs.)

BTW, according to the first link below the "USDA's recommended daily amount for adults up to age 50 is 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men. Women and men older than 50 should have 21 and 30 daily grams, respectively." Last time I saw numbers, something around 95% of the US adult population was not meeting those targets. Keep track for a few days and I think you will see you most likely are falling far short. No substantial fiber, if any, in meat or dairy - so, for most that would mean . . . eat more plants.

health.harvard.edu/blog/sho...

atlasbiomed.com/blog/what-a...

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

thelancet.com/journals/ebio...

Eat well to Be/Stay Well! Ciao - K9

PS The absolute best food source of fiber I have yet found is Trader Joe's ORGANIC no-sugar-added dried cranberries. A 1/4 cup serving has just 2 grams of natural sugar and a remarkable 21 grams of fiber!

pca2004 profile image
pca2004 in reply to cujoe

Cujoe,

The Life Extension magazine arrive yesterday (more on this later) & it touted a new fiber product: Konjac root. So far as I can tell, it is aimed at those who use psyllium.

I have baked bread for 50 years - French: high-protein white flour, yeast, salt & water - no fiber at all. Years ago, I considered adding bran for the lignans. I soon discovered that wheat bran was a waste of time & that rye bran had an amazing amount of useful stuff. The only problem being that there were no rye bran products to be had in the U.S. Plenty in the countries where bread means "rye" - but seemingly not exported. So I ditched the idea.

During covid I decided to experiment with whole-grain rye flour. My son bought me a wonderful book "The Rye Baker: Classic Breads from Europe and America" by  Stanley Ginsberg. I spent about a year working through the recipes (no repeats) with my son and granddaughter commenting. We all loved the bread, but eventually started craving the French loaves.

However, we always have rye crispbread in the house. All of the ryes I baked were dense, as expected, & I'm always amazed by the lightness of the crispbread (100% rye flour & salt are the only listed ingredients.)

Each slice has one gram of soluble fiber and one gram of insoluble (no mention of lignans). Also one gram of protein & only 20 calories. And it is a versatile food, rather than a pill or powder that I would forget to take. Without the crispbread I would no doubt be deficient

-Patrick

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