Private MD News

Prostate drug lowers risk of cancer

Category: Prostate

A new study has found that men at risk for prostate cancer may be able to lower their risk by taking a drug already on the market.

Researchers found that dutasteride, which is sold under the brand name Avodart and is prescribed to shrink the prostate, was found to reduce the risk of prostate cancer in men who are at high risk.

Doctors say the results point to a potentially life-saving way for men to sharply reduce their risk for cancer. Dr Howard Sandler of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center told the Los Angeles Times that the treatment could become standard for men with even a modest risk of prostate cancer.

"The question might be, why isn't every man taking one of these drugs?" he told the news source. "They help people urinate better by shrinking the prostate, they probably reduce baldness, and they reduce the risk of prostate cancer. There seems to be very little downside to them."

Government figures show that more than 200,000 men developed prostate cancer in 2006, the most recent year statistics were available.