Summary Background Prostate cancer is one of the leading causes of death from malignant disease among men in the Western world. One strategy to decrease the risk of dying from this disease is screening with Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA); however, the extent of benefit and harm with such screening is under continuous debate. Methods In December 1994, 20 000 men born 1930 to 1944, randomly sampled from the Population Register, were computer randomised in a 1:1 ratio to a screening group invited for biennial PSA testing or to a control group not invited. In each arm, 48 men were excluded from analysis due to either death or emigration before randomization date or prevalent prostate cancer. The primary endpoint was prostate cancer specific mortality analyzed according to the intention-to-screen principle. Men in the screening group were invited up to the upper age limit (median 69, range 67–71 years) and only men with elevated PSA were offered additional tests such as digital rectal examination and prostate biopsies. The study is still ongoing inviting men who have not yet reached the upper age limit. This is the first planned report on cumulative prostate cancer incidence and mortality calculated up to Dec 31 2008. This study is registered [as an International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial], number [ISRCTN49127736]. Findings Among men randomised to screening 7578/9952 (76%) attended at least once (attendees). During a median follow-up of 14 years, 1138 men in the screening group and 718 in the control group were diagnosed with prostate cancer resulting in a cumulative incidence of prostate cancer of 12.7% in the screening arm and 8.2% in the control arm (hazard ratio 1.64; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.50–1.80; p<0.0001). The absolute cumulative risk reduction of death from prostate cancer at 14 years was 0.40% (95% CI 0.17–0.64%), from 0.90% in the control group to 0.50% in the screening group. The incidence rate ratio for death from prostate cancer was 0.56 (95% CI 0.39–0.82; p=0.002) in the screening compared to the control group. The incidence rate ratio of attendees compared to the control group was 0.44 (95% CI 0.28–0.68; p=0.0002). Overall, 293 men needed to be invited for screening and 12 to be diagnosed to prevent one prostate cancer death. Interpretation The benefit of prostate cancer screening compares favourably to other cancer screening programs and in this study prostate cancer mortality was reduced almost by half over 14 years. However, the risk of over diagnosis is substantial and the number needed to treat is at least as high as in breast cancer screening. Funding The Swedish Cancer Society, the Swedish Research Council and the National Cancer Institute.

We report a light and electron microscopic, immunohistochemical, clinical and prognostic study of 14 patients with epithelioid malignant schwannoma. In 8 patients the tumour involved a major nerve. The tumours were rather small in most instances, the largest diameter being less than 5 cm in 7 cases. Light microscopically, they showed highly cellular areas of epithelioid, polygonal or rounded cells characteristically forming cords and rows and arranged in nodules of varying size. Spindle cell sarcoma areas as in classical malignant schwannoma were seen in 9 cases, and neurofibromatous areas in one case. Four cases were entirely epithelioid in appearance. Electron microscopically the epithelioid tumour cells showed nuclei with mostly even contours containing one or two trabecular or reticular nucleoli, cytoplasmic projections, intra-cytoplasmic myelin-like figures, intercellular junctions and discontinuous, sometimes multilayered external lamina material. The ultrastructural findings indicate that epithelioid malignant schwannoma is a tumour of neural crest derivation having features of Schwann cell differentiation. Immunohistochemically, S-100 protein was demonstrated in 7 tumours and neuron specific enolase in 3. There was a female predominance, 9/14, and a median age of 38.5 years (range 17-74). The extremities, including the hip and shoulder regions, were the most common sites, 12/14. The tumour proved highly malignant; 9 of 14 patients were dead at the time of follow-up and a high incidence of metastasis (7 of 14) was observed.

BACKGROUND The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a prostate carcinoma screening program in which serum prostate‐specific antigen (PSA) levels were measured. METHODS From a group of 20,000 men born between January 1, 1930, and December 31, 1944, 10,000 men were randomized into a screening group and 10,000 were randomized into a control group. Patients in the screening group were invited to undergo initial PSA testing between 1995 and 1996 and then were invited to receive testing every second year thereafter for 8 years (for a total of 4 PSA tests). Men with PSA levels ≥ 3 ng/mL (or ≥ 2.54 ng/mL, in the third and fourth screening rounds) were invited to undergo clinical investigation, which included sextant biopsy of the prostate. By linking to the regional cancer registry, the authors were able to obtain the true and expected incidence rates for the screening and control groups. RESULTS The screening participation rate was high (73%). A total of 884 malignancies have been detected to date, with 640 having been detected in the screening group. There was an early and marked shift toward more favorable disease stage and grade for malignancies detected on repeat screening. In the fourth screening round, only 2 of 82 detected malignancies were classified as advanced disease. Of the 227 screen‐detected tumors on which surgery was performed, only 20 (8.8%) had small volume (< 0.2 cm3). Forty‐three interval malignancies were detected, but only five were accompanied by symptoms. At 8 years, the cumulative disease incidence rate among screening participants was 7.3%, compared with 2.4% in the control arm. The incidence rate observed in the screening population corresponds to the cumulative incidence rate observed in the Swedish male population at age 72 years. CONCLUSIONS Biennial PSA screening was very successful in diagnosing prostate carcinoma at an early stage, when curative treatment typically is effective. In addition, the results regarding interval malignancies were favorable. Thus, decreased mortality should be observed on long‐term follow‐up. The lead time associated with screening appears to fall within the range described in earlier studies involving frozen sera (i.e., 5–9 years). Cancer 2004;100:1397–405. © 2004 American Cancer Society.

The incidence of inguinal hernia is clearly increased in men who have undergone radical retropubic prostatectomy plus pelvic lymph node dissection compared with those who undergo no surgery for prostate cancer. Inguinal hernia appears to develop more often in men with prostate cancer who undergo radical retropubic prostatectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection than in those who undergo pelvic lymph node dissection only. While surgical factors trigger hernial development, previous hernial surgery and post-prostatectomy anastomotic stricture may be important risk factors. In fact, the latter may largely explain the difference in the incidence of inguinal hernia in our lymph node dissection and prostatectomy groups. Prophylactic surgical procedures must be evaluated to address this problem.

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Introduction Cancer is affecting a growing number of persons. Still, the treatment and survival of cancer is improving. Radiation therapy is used in the treatment of cancer. Late radiation-induced injuries afflict 5-15% of irradiated patients. The urinary bladder and bowel may be affected after irradiation of cancer in the pelvic region. Symptoms can be severe, with impaired health related quality of life (HRQoL). Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) involves breathing oxygen at high ambient pressure. HBOT can reverse radiation-induced injuries, alleviate patient-perceived symptoms, and improve HRQoL. We aimed to clarify the effects of HBOT on late radiation-induced injuries in the urinary bladder and bowel, and to clarify some of the underlying mechanisms through which HBOT exerts its effects. Methods A prospective cohort study assessed effects of HBOT on patient-perceived symptoms (Paper I). A rat study assessed reversal of radiation-induced stress with HBOT (Paper II). A methodological experiment assessed reversal of HBOT on cellular death induced by radiation (Paper III). A multi-center, randomized, controlled trial assessed patient-perceived symptoms, HRQoL, and objective clinical outcomes (Paper IV). Result HBOT can alleviate patient-perceived symptoms, reduce objective findings, and improve HRQoL in patients affected by late radiation-induced injuries (Paper I, IV). Oxidative stress and downstream effects, induced by the irradiation, can be reversed by HBOT (Paper II). Paper III outlines a method for studies on urothelial cells exposed to radiation and HBOT. Conclusion HBOT can reduce radiation-induced oxidative stress and inflammatory response. HBOT can reverse injuries induced by radiation therapy to the pelvic region, alleviate patient-perceived symptoms and lead to improved HRQoL.

These data corroborate previous findings that systematic PSA screening reduces PC mortality and suggest that systematic screening may reduce sociodemographic inequality in PC mortality.

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