PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Obesity increases survival in advanced prostate cancer

2021-07-11
(Press-News.org) Obese patients with a form of advanced prostate cancer survive longer than overweight and normal weight patients, new research has found.

The study, presented today at the European Association of Urology congress, EAU21, followed more than 1500 patients over three years. Patients classed as obese - with a BMI over 30 - had a ten percent higher survival rate than thinner patients over 36 months.

Although obesity is usually associated with an increased risk of death from many cancers and some other chronic diseases, there is some evidence in a few cancers of a survival advantage for patients with high body mass index. This phenomenon is known as the 'obesity paradox'.

Nicola Fossati, Alberto Martini and colleagues at San Raffaele University in Italy wanted to test whether the 'obesity paradox' held true for patients with metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer - an advanced form of the disease that no longer responds to testosterone lowering treatments.

They looked at survival rates in 1,577 patients involved in three different clinical trials, with an average age of 69 and average BMI of 28. They found that BMI was a protective factor in both overall and cancer-specific survival, with 4% higher overall survival probability and 29% cancer-specific survival probability. Even when they adjusted for higher doses of chemotherapy given to larger patients, the team found the protective effect remained. Over 36 months, around 30% of obese patients survived compared to 20% of overweight and normal weight individuals.

Dr Nicola Fossati, a urologist at San Raffaele University says: "Looking at patients with metastasis of prostate cancer, we found that obese patients are living longer. This means that BMI could be used to predict survival in these patients.

"This obesity paradox has been seen in some other cancers, possibly due to the relationship between tissue fat and cancer genomes, and more research is needed in this area. It's also possible that improved survival may be due to the interaction of chemotherapy with other drugs. Obese patients in this older age group tend to be taking medication for other conditions and we do not fully understand how these medicines interconnect.

"Nevertheless, we would not recommend weight gain to anyone with this or another disease. Obesity is a risk factor for many cancers and other diseases and patients should always aim for a healthy BMI of 18 to 24."

Professor Peter Albers, from Düsseldorf University, who chairs the EAU Scientific Congress Office, said: "There are many possible explanations for the association of body weight with positive outcome in metastatic cancers. It might be that patients with higher BMI are able to tolerate the toxicity of the treatments and their side effects better; in prostate cancer it might be due to the protective impact of hormones found in tissue fat; and it is known that healthy men with slightly higher BMI have a higher overall life expectancy compared to very slim ones.

"However, at the moment, these are just hypotheses. Further research is needed to identify the biological mechanism behind these different outcomes. Until that mechanism is proven, we can't recommend any change to treatment for patients with advanced prostate cancer."

INFORMATION:



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Beautiful VR setting could reduce pain in unpleasant medical procedure

2021-07-11
Being immersed in a stunning 'virtual' Icelandic landscape can reduce the pain caused by uncomfortable medical procedures, new research has found. The study compared patients with and without virtual reality (VR) headsets having rigid cystoscopies, where a rigid telescope is inserted through the urethra into the bladder. The research is being presented today at the European Association of Urology congress, EAU21. Diagnosing and treating bladder cancer usually requires checking the bladder through a cystoscopy, which is perceived by patients as unpleasant and painful. Some patients avoid follow-up and as a result suffer uncontrolled and irreversible development of the disease. It is possible to have a flexible cystoscopy, which is less painful, ...

New concept drug hunts down late-stage prostate cancer

2021-07-11
A new class of drug successfully targets treatment-resistant prostate cancers and prolongs the life of patients. The treatment delivers beta radiation directly to tumour cells, is well tolerated by patients and keeps them alive for longer than standard care, found a phase 3 trial to be presented at the European Association of Urology congress, EAU21, today. Despite progress in medicine in recent years, metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer remains untreatable and fatal. The new treatment, known as Lu-PSMA-617, takes a new approach, targeting a molecule called PSMA, which is known to be increased on the surfaces of the tumour cells, destroying them and their surrounding microenvironment. Professor Johann de Bono, Professor of Experimental Cancer Medicine at The ...

New use of old drug reduces risk of kidney cancer returning

2021-07-11
Using an existing drug for late-stage kidney cancer at an earlier stage of the disease could reduce the risk of cancer recurring by a third, according to new research. The findings from the Phase III trial are presented today at the European Association of Urology congress (EAU21). There is a high risk of kidney cancer returning, following surgery to remove tumours, but there is currently no treatment to help prevent this. The KEYNOTE study involved just under 1000 patients with kidney cancer who had undergone surgery. Half of them were given the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab, or pembro, and the other half a placebo. Pembro is used to treat a number of cancers, including late-stage kidney cancer, where the disease has spread to ...

90-year-old woman infected with UK and South African COVID-19 variants at the same time

2021-07-11
Researchers in Belgium report on the case of a 90-year-old woman who was simultaneously infected with two different variants of concern (VOCs) of COVID-19, in a Case Report being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) held online this year. On March 3 2021, the woman, whose medical history was unremarkable, was admitted to the OLV Hospital in the Belgian city of Aalst after a spate of falls. She tested positive for COVID-19 on the same day. She lived alone and received nursing care at home, and had not been vaccinated against COVID-19. Initially, there were no ...

Dog food sold across Europe contains antibiotic-resistant bacteria, including 'superbugs' found in hospital patients

2021-07-11
New research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID), held online this year, reveals raw dog food to be a major source of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, making it an international public health risk. With some of the multidrug-resistant bacteria in raw dog food identical to those found in hospital patients in several different European countries, the researchers say the trend for feeding dogs raw food may be fuelling the spread of antibiotic resistant-bacteria. Drug-resistant infections kill an estimated 700,000 people a year globally and, with the figure projected to rise to 10 million ...

Resistance to last-resort antibiotic may be passing between pet dogs and their owners

2021-07-11
The dangerous mcr-1 gene, which provides resistance to the last-resort antibiotic colistin, has been found in four healthy humans and two pet dogs. In two cases, both dog and owner were harbouring the gene, according to new research being presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases (ECCMID) held online this year. Since first being reported in China in 2015, the mcr-1 gene has been found in various people and animals around the world. It confers resistance to colistin, an antibiotic of last resort used to treat infections from some bacteria resistant to all other antibiotics. The nightmare scenario that could emerge is mcr-1 combining with already drug-resistant bacteria ...

Progression to glenohumeral arthritis after arthroscopic posterior stabilization

2021-07-10
Nashville, Tenn. (3:24 p.m. EDT--July 10, 2021)--Approximately 12 percent of patients who underwent shoulder stabilization surgery experience arthritis in the shoulder joint within a seven-year period, according to research presented today at the American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine-Arthroscopy Association of North America Combined 2021 Annual Meeting. "While arthroscopic stabilization for posterior glenohumeral instability has shown excellent success preventing recurrent instability and allowing return to sport, eventual progression to glenohumeral arthritis ...

High-grade acetabular cartilage lesions versus low-grade lesions

2021-07-10
Nashville, Tenn. (July 10 2021--2:25 EDT)--Patients undergoing hip arthroscopy with high-grade cartilage damage do not see as positive results compared with patients with lower grade cartilage damage, according to research reported today at the American Orthopedic Society of Sports Medicine- Arthroscopy Association of North America Combined 2021 Annual Meeting. The research was presented by Dominic Carreira, MD, of Peachtree Orthopedics in Atlanta, Ga. Dr. Carreira and his colleagues sought to determine what the impact of acetabular cartilage damage on outcomes following primary repair of acetabular labral tears. When articular cartilage is damaged, joint ...

Subacromial balloon spacer versus partial repair for massive rotator cuff tears

2021-07-10
Nashville, Tenn. (1:35 p.m. EDT--July 10, 2021) -- Use of a biodegradable balloon spacer during massive rotator cuff tear surgery produced similar outcomes when compared to partial rotator cuff repair for patients with massive rotator cuff tears (MRCTs) at 24-month follow up, with potential for early improvement, according to research presented today at the American Orthopedic Society of Sports Medicine - Arthroscopy Association of North America Combined 2021 Annual Meeting. Despite various treatment options, the successful management of irreparable, MRCTs remains challenging. Implantation of a biodegradable subacromial balloon spacer has gained considerable interest for the treatment of MCRTs due to its potential to recenter the humeral ...

Scientists observe a new type of topological defect in chiral magnets for the first time

Scientists observe a new type of topological defect in chiral magnets for the first time
2021-07-10
"Topological defects" are formed when the symmetry of a magnetic material is disrupted. Domain walls (DWs) are a type of topological defect that separates regions of different magnetic orientations. A widely studied phenomenon, the manipulation of these defects has potential applications in high-performance memory storage devices, energy processing devices, and quantum computing. Recently, the possibility of other topological defects embedded in or combined with DWs has gained attention for their potential applications in different fields of physics. Some examples of these "defects within defects" ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

New generation of Antibody-Drug Conjugates (ADCs) shows unprecedented promise in early-stage disease

Sylvester Cancer Tip Sheet for October 2025

Three science and technology leaders elected to Hertz Foundation Board of Directors

Jump Trading CSO Kevin Bowers elected to Hertz Foundation Board of Directors

Former Inscripta CEO Sri Kosaraju elected to Hertz Foundation Board of Directors

Citadel’s Jordan Chetty elected to Hertz Foundation Board of Directors

McGill research flags Montreal snow dump, inactive landfills as major methane polluters

A lightweight and rapid bidirectional search algorithm

Eighty-five years of big tree history available in one place for the first time

MIT invents human brain model with six major cell types to enable personalized disease research, drug discovery

Health and economic air quality co-benefits of stringent climate policies

How immune cells deliver their deadly cargo

How the brain becomes a better listener: How focus enhances sound processing

Processed fats found in margarines unlikely to affect heart health

Scientists discover how leukemia cells evade treatment

Sandra Shi MD, MPH, named 2025 STAT Wunderkind

Treating liver disease with microscopic nanoparticles

Chemicals might be hitching a ride on nanoplastics to enter your skin

Pregnant patients with preexisting high cholesterol may have elevated CV risk

UC stroke experts discuss current and future use of AI tools in research and treatment

The Southern Ocean’s low-salinity water locked away CO2 for decades, but...

OHSU researchers develop functional eggs from human skin cells

Most users cannot identify AI bias, even in training data

Hurricane outages: Analysis details the where, and who, of increased future power cuts

Craters on surface of melanoma cells found to serve as sites for tumor killing

Research Spotlight: Mapping overlooked challenges in stroke recovery

Geographic and temporal patterns of screening for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer in the US

Cannabis laws and opioid use among commercially insured patients with cancer diagnoses

Research Spotlight: Surprising gene mutation in brain’s immune cells linked to increased Alzheimer’s risk

Missing molecule may explain Down syndrome

[Press-News.org] Obesity increases survival in advanced prostate cancer