Presence of the metabolic syndrome is associated with shorter time to castration-resistant prostate cancer.

BACKGROUND: Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a set of risk factors that includes obesity and insulin resistance and has been implicated in the development of prostate cancer. Its impact on androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) efficacy has not been studied. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Retrospective study of prostate cancer patients seen from 1998 to 2005 in a medical oncology clinic. MS, as defined by modified Adult Treatment Panel III criteria, was assessed at the time of initiation of ADT. The study end points were time to prostate-specific antigen (PSA) progression and overall survival (OS) from time of starting ADT. RESULTS: Eighty-two patients treated with ADT and data to assess for presence of MS were identified. Median age in men with and without MS was 70 years and 49% of the patients evaluated met criteria for MS. Median time to PSA progression for patients with MS was 16 versus 36 months without MS (P=0.003). The median OS for patients with MS was 36.5 months after commencing ADT compared with 46.7 months for those patients without MS (P=0.061). CONCLUSIONS: This preliminary data suggest that MS is a risk factor for earlier development of castration-resistant prostate cancer and support the need for a prospective evaluation of this finding.

Primary care utilization patterns before and after lung cancer diagnosis.

The objective of this study was to evaluate change in primary care utilization rates after lung cancer diagnosis in the Veterans Health Administration. We used electronic medical record data (1997-2005) to identify male veterans (n = 323) with incident lung cancers. Primary care utilization rates were assessed in the 12-month period before and after cancer diagnosis. Statistical analysis included paired t-tests. Rates of primary care utilization decreased by 0.02 visits per person-month (VPPM) in the 12-month period after cancer diagnosis (P > 0.05). Utilization for acute conditions decreased by 20% (P < 0.01) in the 12-month period after diagnosis, from 0.32 VPPM before diagnosis to 0.12 VPPM after diagnosis. Utilization for chronic conditions remained stable after diagnosis (0.29 VPPM vs. 0.29 VPPM, P > 0.05). Indications for primary care utilization after diagnosis were similar to indications for utilization prior to diagnosis. Common indications for utilization included hypertension and lower respiratory infections. We speculate that primary care utilization for acute conditions was lower after cancer diagnosis because several of the acute conditions (e.g. upper respiratory infection) treated prior to the cancer may have been harbingers of the cancer diagnosis. Additional research is required to illuminate how primary care can best be delivered during the initial phase of cancer treatment.