Biopeer: C-reactive protein may indicate prostate cancer survival

Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University have discovered that the C-reactive protein (CRP) may indicate the chances of survival in prostate cancer patients. As per research, higher CRP levels are found when inflammation is present in the body. Researchers evaluated patients' correlating CPR levels in cancer treatment and in their survival rate. Patients recieved docetaxel and DN-101 (a high dose formulation of calcitriol) or docetaxel with a placebo. The results from the Phase 2 clinical trial showed that a combination of DN-101 and docetaxel increased the chances of survival by 49% and reduced the frequency of serious adverse events by 34%, as compared to the use of Taxotere alone. “While sometimes inflammation may slow the cancer, an increasing body of evidence suggests that cancer can take advantage of the inflammatory response and the inflammatory cytokines released by the immune reaction may in fact fuel cancer progression. To the extent that our hypothesis proves true, C-reactive protein may be reflecting the overall intensity of the inflammation,” said Tomasz Beer, director of the Prostate Cancer Research program at the OHSU Cancer Institute.

Researchers based in the North Central Cancer Treatment Group at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., have found that the drug – gabapentin – reduces hot flashes in patients undergoing anti-hormonal treatment for prostate cancer. The study involved four groups of men aged 70 years who experienced hot flashes 14 times a week. The first group received placebo pills, another group received a 300 mg/d (milligrams a day) tablet of gabapentin, the third group received an escalating dose of gabapentin that reached 600 mg/d, and the fourth group’s dose reached 900 mg/d. The results showed that the median hot flash frequency and the score decreased between 32% to 34% in the 600 mg/d group, and 44% to 46% in the 900 mg/d gabapentin group.

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