Earlier studies of androgen-receptor (AR) expression using frozen prostate tissue, and later studies using archived specimens, produced the consensus that ligand-stabilized AR is nuclear, AR expression is similar in benign epithelia and stroma, AR expression is greater in secretory epithelia than basal cells, and AR expression is more variable in prostate cancer (CaP) than in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Accurate measurement of AR expression remains technically challenging but necessary to evaluate the relevance of ARs to clinical CaP. Recent studies demonstrated that AR expression in epithelia and stroma may be prognostic in clinically localized CaP, and AR expression may play a role in racial differences in CaP mortality and predict response to androgen deprivation therapy. High levels of AR and AR-regulated gene expression indicate a central role for AR in growth regulation of castration-recurrent CaP. New treatments for the lethal phenotype of CaP require better understanding of AR transactivation during androgen deprivation therapy.
Keywordsandrogen receptor; prostate cancer; quantitative video image analysis; immunohistochemistry Androgens are necessary for the development and growth of the prostate and for the development, growth and progression of prostate cancer (CaP). An American man is diagnosed with CaP every 3 minutes,[1] and the worldwide incidence of CaP is increasing an estimated 1.1% annually.[2] Despite increased use of digital rectal examination and serum prostatespecific antigen (PSA) measurement for early detection, approximately 30% of men treated with curative intent suffer CaP recurrence. These men, and those who present with locally advanced or metastatic CaP, can be palliated by androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), which causes regression of androgen-dependent CaP through programmed cell death.[3] Although there are many methods for medical and surgical ADT, the results of ADT remain unimproved since its discovery more than 60 years ago.[4] More than 80% of men with disseminated CaP demonstrate clinical or biochemical response that is associated with a mean life expectancy of approximately 3.5 years, in contrast to non-responders or untreated patients who live an average of 9 months. Regardless of the androgen responsiveness of incurable CaP, almost all patients succumb to castration-recurrent CaP because it responds poorly to all known therapies, and