This randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind study was performed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of once-a-day terazosin (10 mg/day) in ambulatory patients (n = 57) with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). After a 4-week placebo lead-in and a 24-week treatment period with terazosin (both single-blind), 30 patients who responded to terazosin were randomly assigned to either the terazosin or placebo treatment group for 12 weeks.During the single-blind treatment period, the peak urine flow rate increased 54% from a baseline average of 7.76 ml/sec to 11.92 mYsec after terazosin; the mean flow rate increased 55% from a baseline of 4.90 ml/sec to 7.59 ml/sec; and the residual volume decreased 56% from 93.1 ml to 40.7 ml. The mean obstructive symptom score, irritative symptom score and physician's global assessment score improved by 68%. 34% and 27%, respectively. All these changes were significant (P < 0.05) when compared to baseline values.During the double-blind period, the improvement in all the variables was sustained in the terazosin group but not in the placebo group. Peak and mean urinary flow rates, and physician's global assessment showed significant ( P 5 0.05) differences at the end of the double-blind period. Adverse events occurred only during the single-blind period. The most frequent were headache (n = 6), asthenia (n = 3), and hypotension (n = 3).In summary, terazosin administered once-a-day improved the obstructive and irritative symptoms of BPH, urine flow rates and residual volume. Terazosin was well tolerated.

For more than 30 years Fosfestrol (Honvan®) has been used as an estrogen for successful palliative therapy of prostatic carcinoma, but the pharmacokinetics of this compound were unknown due to the lack of analytical methods. Over the last few years we have developed a special extraction process for Fosfestrol and its metabolites from plasma with recovery yields > 90%. The simultaneous measurement of the most important compounds after intravenous and oral administration was achieved by high-performance liquid chromatography, either with the UV detector (236 nm) or with an electrochemical detector (+ 1 V). The working electrode is a carbon paste electrode constructed in this laboratory; the counter electrode is an Au and the reference electrode an Ag/AgCl electrode. The electrode processes have been clarified. Fosfestrol and its monophosphate exist only for a short time in small amounts in the circulating blood after intravenous administration, whilst after oral administration, not even traces of the phosphates could be detected in the plasma. The most important influence on plasma levels of Fosfestrol and its metabolites is due to the extraction function of the liver. Diethylstilbestrol conjugates enter into the enterohepatic circle, thus forming a possible source of DES available over more than 24 h. Only DES glucuronide and DES glucuronide-sulphate are renally eliminated and could be detected after administration over 3 days.

No abstract

This paper describes the synthesis of alpha-aminoisobutyric acid-11C (11C-AIB) and studies its body distribution in healthy and tumor-bearing animals. High tissue levels of 11C-AIB were found in organs with high metabolic activity (pancreas, liver, kidney). The prostate tumor 11C-AIB concentrations are significantly lower than that of pancreas, liver, and kidney, but increased when compared with normal prostate levels. Effective chemotherapy, which reduces tumor growth of two different prostate adenocarcinoma cell lines (R-3327-H, R-3327-G) also decreases 11C-AIB levels and the 11C-AIB prostate to tumor ratio.

Inhibitors of polyamine synthesis were tested for therapeutic effectiveness on transplantable prostate cancer. Inhibition of either ornithine decarboxylase or S-adenosyl-L-methionine decarboxylase (AMDC) by α-difluormethylornithine (DFMO) or methylglyoxal-bis[guanylhydrazone] (MGBG), respectively, was associated with significant antitumor effect. The combination of DFMO with MGBG was not only more effective but no more toxic than MGBG alone. Combination of MGBG with 9-B-D-arabinofuranosyladenine, an indirect effector of SAMDC, failed to increase therapeutic effectiveness of MGBG.

C-reactive protein (CRP) has been found to be ubiquitous in sera when determined by a highly sensitive method such as radioimmunoassay. Patients with some tumors appear to have much higher serum levels of CRP than others; in these, CRP seems to reflect the tumor burden. There is a positive correlation with TNM staging and the disease activity at the time of determination. CRP shows a high degree of ‘uniqueness’ when correlated with other routinely used cancer markers such as carcinoembryonic antigen, placental-like alkaline phosphatase and γ-glutamyltranspeptidase.

High concentrations of polyamines have been found in the normal human prostate. The profile of these amines appeared significantly changed in benign hypertrophy of the prostate. An increase of spermine and a fall of putrescine were always found in patients with a hypertrophied prostate weighing more than 30 g. Alterations of plasmin in these tissues seemed to reflect changes in the matrix; abnormalities of thyroid and pancreatic function documented by changes in the serum levels of TSH and c-peptide which are thought to be further evidence of a mesenchymal-epithelial interaction in the pathogenesis of benign prostate hypertrophy.

Die Werte für die Peptidhormone LH, FSH, TSH, Prolaktin, β-HCG und Parathormone schwanken erheblich bei Patienten mit urogenitalen Tumoren. β-HCG ist nur beim Chorionkarzinom, beim Hodenteratom und beim embryonalen Hodenkarzinom erhöht und steigert die Sekretion von Prolaktin. Serum-TSH und Prolaktin sind beim Nierenkarzinom auffällig verändert. Nach Nephrektomie bei fortgeschrittenem Tumorstadium persistiert der pathologisch erhöhte TSH-Gehalt, während sich häufiger emiedrigte PTH-Werte in dieser Gruppe nach-weisen lassen. Beim Blasenkarzinom weichen LH und Prolaktin in Abhängigkeit vom Tumorstadium von der Norm ab. Prostataadenom und Karzinom zeigen ähnliche Werte für die Peptidhormone. Die Östrogentherapie verändert den Serum TSH-, Prolaktin- und den LH-Gehalt. Die Konzentration der Peptidhormone wird nicht allein durch die endokrine Aktivität des Tumors, hormoninaktive Peptidanalogien, altersbedingte Verschiebungen, sondern auch durch die Art der Therapie beeinflußt.