Abstract
The growing incidence of prostate cancer is stimulating investigations on cancer differentiation and proliferation. Studies on guinea-pigs showed IGF can cause and stimulate cancer as hepatocarcinoma, breast cancer, pancreas cancer and prostate cancer. Between April 2001 and February 2002 we investigated 17 patients (50–75 years old) with prostate cancer. IGF1 serum concentration before surgery was higher than physiological level, at 2 months and, above all, at 6 months after radical prostatectomy this level decreased significantly. Furthermore IGF growing was related with protein and hormone variations (protein and hormone levels were measured before surgery, at 2 and 6 months after surgery; BMI was measured in the same periods). IGF1R concentration on the prostate glande was low expressed as we showed with immunohistochemistry: this could mean a low sensibility to apoptosis. IGF1/PSA was significantly low in patients with prostate cancer. These results suggest the possible role of IGF1 in differentiation-progression of prostate cancer and in metabolic alterations. Other studies about IGF might investigate its diagnostic and therapeutic role.
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