We concluded that both PSA nadir and time to PSA nadir are significant predictors of disease progression for prostate cancer patients receiving ADT.

Introduction Female sexual function contains four major subtypes of desire, arousal, orgasm, and pain. Few studies used validated instruments to determine the dysfunction in these areas and assess their risk factors. Aim To assess the prevalence of and risk factors for individual components of sexual difficulty in women. Methods A self-administered questionnaire containing the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) was given to 2,159 woman employees of two hospitals to assess their sexual function and its correlates. Main Outcome Measures The associations between female sexual difficulty in individual domains defined by the FSFI domain scores and potential risk factors assessed by simple questions. Results Among the 1,580 respondents, 930 women’s data were eligible for analysis with a mean age of 36.1 years (range 20–67). Of them, 43.8% had sexual difficulty in one or more domains, including low desire in 31.3%; low arousal, 18.2%; low lubrication, 4.8%; low orgasmic function, 10.4%; low satisfaction, 7.3%; and sexual pain, 10.5%. Compared with the younger women (20–49 years), the oldest age group (50–67 years) had a significantly higher prevalence in low desire, low arousal, and low lubrication, but not in the other domains. Based on multivariate logistic regression analyses, poor relationship with the partner and perception of partner’s sexual dysfunction were major risk factors for low desire, low arousal, low orgasmic function, and low satisfaction. Age and urge urinary incontinence were associated with low lubrication and sexual pain. Most comorbidities were not related to these difficulties, except diabetes being related to low desire. Conclusions Relationship factors had substantial impact on female sexual function in desire, arousal, orgasm, and satisfaction. On the other hand, women’s lubrication problem and sexual pain were related predominantly with biological factors. These are initial results and future research is needed to confirm them.

Recent evidence indicates that microRNAs might participate in prostate cancer initiation, progression and treatment response. Germline variations in microRNAs might alter target gene expression and modify the efficacy of prostate cancer therapy. To determine whether genetic variants in microRNAs and microRNA target sites are associated with the risk of biochemical recurrence (BCR) after radical prostatectomy (RP). We retrospectively studied two independent cohorts composed of 320 Asian and 526 Caucasian men with pathologically organ-confined prostate cancer who had a median follow-up of 54.7 and 88.8 months after RP, respectively. Patients were systematically genotyped for 64 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in microRNAs and microRNA target sites, and their prognostic significance on BCR was assessed by Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox regression model. After adjusting for known clinicopathologic risk factors, two SNPs (MIR605 rs2043556 and CDON rs3737336) remained associated with BCR. The numbers of risk alleles showed a cumulative effect on BCR [perallele hazard ratio (HR) 1.60, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.16-2.21, p for trend 5 0.005] in Asian cohort, and the risk was replicated in Caucasian cohort (HR 1.55, 95% CI 1.15-2.08, p for trend 5 0.004) and in combined analysis (HR 1.57, 95% CI 1.26-1.96, p for trend <0.001). Results warrant replication in larger cohorts. This is the first study demonstrating that SNPs in microRNAs and micro-RNA target sites can be predictive biomarkers for BCR after RP.

Purpose: Prostate cancer is a heterogeneous genetic disease, and molecular methods for predicting prognosis in patients with aggressive form of the disease are urgently needed to better personalize treatment approaches. The objective was to identify host genetic variations in candidate steroidogenic genes affecting hormone levels and prostate cancer progression.Experimental Design: The study examined two independent cohorts composed of 526 Caucasian men with organ-confined prostate cancer and 601 Taiwanese men on androgen-deprivation therapy. Caucasians were genotyped for 109 haplotype-tagging single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in CYP17A1, ESR1, CYP19A1, and HSD3B1, and their prognostic significance on disease progression was assessed using Kaplan-Meier survival curves and Cox regression models. Positive findings, including previously identified SRD5A1, SRD5A2, HSD17B2, HSD17B3, and HSD17B12 polymorphisms, were then explored in Taiwanese men (n ¼ 32 SNPs). The influence of positive markers on the circulating hormonal levels was then appraised in Caucasians using specific and sensitive mass spectrometry-based methods.Results: After adjusting for known risk factors, variants of CYP17A1 (rs6162), HSD17B2 (rs4243229 and rs7201637), and ESR1 (rs1062577) were associated with progressive disease in both cohorts. Indeed, the presence of these variations was significantly associated with progression in Caucasians (HR, 2.29-4.10; P ¼ 0.0014-2 Â 10 À7 ) and survival in Taiwanese patients [HR ¼ 3.74; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.71-8.19,Remarkably, the CYP17A1 rs6162 polymorphism was linked to plasma dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate (DHEA-S) levels (P ¼ 0.03), HSD17B2 rs7201637 with levels of dihydrotestosterone (P ¼ 0.03), and ESR1 rs1062577 with levels of estrone-S and androsterone-glucuronide (P 0.05).