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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Boston, Massachusetts » Jean Mayer Human Nutrition Research Center On Aging » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #208766
Title: Prostatic Fatty Acids and Cancer Recurrence Following Radical Prostatectomy for Early-Stage Prostate Cancer

Author
item FREEMAN, VINCENT - UNIV.OF ILLINOIS CHICAGO
item FLANIGAN, ROBERT - LOYOLA UNIV SCHOOL OF MED
item Meydani, Mohsen

Submitted to: Cancer Causes and Control
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/27/2006
Publication Date: 3/7/2007
Citation: Freeman, V.L., Flanigan, R.C., Meydani, M. 2007. Prostatic Fatty Acids and Cancer Recurrence Following Radical Prostatectomy for Early-Stage Prostate Cancer. Cancer Causes and Control. 18: 211-218.

Interpretive Summary: Prostate cancer remains the most common cancer among men in the United States. It accounts for about one-third of all cancers diagnosed in U.S. men each year. The vast majority are detected clinically at a local stage. For those diagnosed with clinically localized prostate cancer, cure is possible with radical prostate surgery (prostatectomy) alone or in combination with other treatments. The probability of biochemical recurrence within 5 years following radical prostatectomy is approximately 10-15 percent, but the risk varies substantially between patients. Results from some observational studies suggest that diet and energy balance influence the clinical course of early-stage prostate cancer. To evaluate possible mechanisms, we examined the relation between concentrations of fatty acids (acids that are derived from fats) from the prostate gland at diagnosis and when cancer recurred after primary therapy. Fatty acids were measured in fresh, non-cancerous prostate tissue collected from 184 men undergoing radical surgery in the prostate in localized prostate cancer. Their association with risk of recurrence of the cancer was analyzed and used factors including patient age, body mass index, and tumor type and ethnic background. During an average follow-up of 47 months, 14 patients experienced a recurrence. Percent of fatty acids in the study independently predicted risk of recurrence. The study indicates that differences in concentrations of various fatty acids in the prostate at the time of a diagnosis of early-stage prostate cancer help explain differences in the biochemical course of the disease following radical prostate surgery. These factors could impact the advancement of prostate cancer treatment, especially for predicting success of treatment of patients with early stage prostate cancer and indicating a path the impact of fatty acids on the use and or development of other therapies.

Technical Abstract: Objective: Results from some observational studies suggest that diet and energy balance influence the clinical course of early-stage prostate cancer. To evaluate possible mechanisms, we prospectively examined the relation between prostatic concentrations of fatty acids at diagnosis and cancer recurrence following primary therapy. Methods: Fatty acids were measured by capillary gas chromatography in fresh, non-malignant prostate tissue collected from 184 men undergoing radical prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate cancer. Their association with risk of biochemical disease recurrence (a rising serum prostate-specific antigen following a disease-free [less than 0.1 ng/mL] interval greater or equal to 6 months) was analyzed using Cox proportional hazards models incorporating patient age, body mass index, and tumor characteristics at diagnosis and ethnicity. Results: During an average follow-up of 47 months, 14 patients experienced biochemical recurrence. Percent total polyunsaturated fatty acid, percent oleic acid, and the ratio of oleic-to-stearic acid independently predicted risk (multivariate hazards ratio [HR] = 0.89, 95 percent confidence interval [CI] = [0.80, 0.98], HR = 1.12, 95 percent CI [1.03, 1.21], and HR = 1.55, 95 percent CI [1.17, 2.05], respectively, P = 0.002 to 0.21). Conclusion: Inter-individual differences in prostatic concentrations of fatty acids at the time of a diagnosis of early-stage prostate cancer help explain differences in the biochemical course of the disease following radical prostatectomy.