April 12, 2017 – Who Responds

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Anchor lead: Why do some men with prostate cancer respond to high testosterone? Elizabeth Tracey reports

Injections of high amounts of the male hormone testosterone are able to slow down prostate cancer in some men with advanced disease, ongoing research by Sam Denmeade and colleagues at Johns Hopkins has shown. Denmeade says they’re trying to understand why only some men respond.

Denmeade: We’re studying to see is there a genetic signature in the tumor or in the man, an inherited signature, that might predict who responds. The other thing we’ve been very interested in is can we reset the cancer, after we give testosterone, does the cancer become sensitive again to low testosterone therapies. From the laboratory we see that can happen, and in some of the patients we also see that’s happening. So after a period of high testosterone when we give men back drugs that will lower the testosterone, when they started resistant they’re now sensitive again.   :30

Denmeade notes that high dose testosterone is used in this capacity, not the formulations used for low testosterone therapy. At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.