Cancer News, Treatment and Research

Androgen deprivation therapy is a common and effective treatment for advanced prostate cancer. However, among other side-effects, it can cause significant bone thinning in men on long-term treatment. A new study from the University of Michigan (home to the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center) and the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, finds that although bone mineral density testing is carried out on some men receiving this therapy, it is not routine. They did note, however, that men were significantly more likely to be tested when they were being cared for by both a urologist and a primary care physician. Their paper appears in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.