Drug could save men from prostate cancer

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

The drug finasteride could help to prevent prostate cancer, according to a new study.
Finasteride is a drug which is used to treat an enlarged prostate gland. But it has not been known whether it can also have any effect on prostate cancer.

A team from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle now analyzes data from the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial. They conclude that any possible increase in higher-grade tumors would be more than offset by an overall reduction in the number of prostate cancer cases in the general population.

Use of finasteride reduced the incidence of prostate cancer in the population by 25 per cent compared with placebo. However there is a possible increase in the number of high-grade tumors. But the present analysis shows that lives would still be saved by finasteride. This is an important breakthrough, because it suggests that prostate cancer can be prevented by drug treatment.

Source
Cancer online 28th February 2005 (print 1st April)

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