George Washington University Hospital Tip Sheet: New Prostate Cancer Study

7/7/2004

From: Maureen Ryan of George Washington University Hospital, 202-715-4447; Web: http://www.gwhospital.com

WASHINGTON, July 7 -- A study to be released today in the New England Journal of Medicine has concluded that men whose prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level increases by more than 2.0 ng per milliliter during the year before the diagnosis of prostate cancer may have a relatively high risk of death from prostate cancer despite undergoing radical prostatectomy (removal of the prostate.)

The researchers, Anthony V. D'Amico, M.D., Ph.D., Ming-Hui Chen, Ph.D., Kimberly A. Roehl, M.P.H. and William J. Catalona, M.D., studied 1095 men with localized prostate cancer to assess whether the rate of rise in the PSA level - the PSA velocity - during the year before diagnosis, the PSA level at diagnosis, the Gleason score and the clinical tumor stage could predict the time to death from prostate cancer and death from any cause after radical prostatectomy.

The results of the research showed that for men with an annual PSA velocity of more than 2.0 ng per milliliter, estimates of the risk of death from prostate cancer and death from any cause seven years after radical prostatectomy were also influenced by the PSA level, tumor stage and Gleason score at diagnosis.

The following physician is available to discuss the results of the prostate cancer study:

Jason Engel, M.D., Clinical Director of Urologic Laparoscopy at The George Washington University Hospital. He is a surgeon at GW Hospital's Center for Robotic Surgery, specializing in minimally invasive surgery using the da Vinci robot.

To arrange an interview please contact Maureen Ryan at 202- 715-4447.