6 Different Prostate Cancer Cell Types?

[gamma909]

I recently heard that there a number of different PCa cell types with different characteristics - some actually do not need testosterone, some have figured out how to manufacture testosterone, etc. I may not have this exactly correct, but I am trying to find more info/articles about this but searches have not come up with anything thus far. Is anyone familiar with this topic and can you point me in the right direction?

[Tall_Allen]

Do you mean that there are 6 different ways in which prostate cancer becomes castration resistant?

[gamma909 in reply to Tall_Allen]

Thanks for the reply - Not exactly, although this is a related topic, I think. What I heard was that a researcher identified distinctly different types of PCa cells - each has different characteristics and will respond differently to treatments. For example, there can be a percentage of PCa cells out of all the PCa cells you have that actually do not need testosterone so a ADT will not kill/slow these cells. Similarly, cells that have figured out how to produce testosterone will not respond. Sorry I don't have additional information, I heard this in passing but it piqued my interest.

[spikezoey]

My understanding is that types 1 and 2 are the stem cells and progenitor cells of the PCa tumor. They make up 1% of the tumor and don’t use adrogrens to multiply. Types 3-6 do use androgens to multiply. These get hit when you go on ADT. However, some of these may figure out a way to create their own testosterone and keep multiplying. I don’t have a citation other than the PCa support group I attend at Duke, where that’s how a member explained it to me.

[gamma909 in reply to spikezoey]

Thanks - that's what I was looking for. I will keep searching for any research papers on this topic

[dentaltwin in reply to spikezoey]

Do you have a reference? A quick search yielded this:

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

[spikezoey in reply to dentaltwin]

I don't have a source, sorry. But I can contact the guy at the PCa support group who told me this and ask him if he has a source.

[dentaltwin in reply to spikezoey]

Thanks!

[Hidden]

Hi Kurt65.

I’m not sure you have that correct about prostate cancer cells producing testosterone. My understanding, as an example, is that when prostate cancer metastasizes beyond the prostate it’s still considered to be prostate cancer. Those cancer cells will produce PSA even if they have developed in the bones or the lungs. For that reason after treatment, radical prostatectomy in my case, the level of PSA in my blood must go to zero (or an unmeasurable amount within lab tolerances). If my bloods come back with a measurable PSA then the cancer will have metastasized. I don’t think prostate cancer cells can produce testosterone simply because testosterone is produced in the testicles.

[gamma909 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks for the reply. Here is a reference (there may be others, of course) for this topic. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

[gamma909 in reply to gamma909]

Just to add to this, this type of cell would thus not be impacted by ADT.

[cpcohen]

Googling:

prostate cancer genetics castrate resistant

gives lots of interesting hits.

I think there are lots more than 6 genetic variants. Cancer cells can mutate in all kinds of interesting ways.

. Charles