US investigators have identified two promising new treatment options for men with recurrent prostate cancer, both of which helped patients live longer without their disease progressing than the current standard treatment.

They found that the combination of ADT plus enzalutamide reduced the risk of metastasis or death by 58% over ADT alone. Enzalutamide alone reduced the risk of metastasis or death by 37% over ADT alone. Both treatments maintained quality of life relative to the ADT alone.

Read the full article published in the New England Journal of Medicine here.

Institute of Cancer Research scientists have found that it is possible to reverse resistance to hormone therapy.
By blocking the secret messages that cancer cells send to hijack healthy white blood cells, the researchers were able to reverse resistance in a small group of patients. In some, they were able to shrink tumours or halt their growth.

In the trial, patients with advanced prostate cancer that had stopped responding to hormone therapy were given a combination of AZD5069, an experimental drug that prevents white blood cells from being dragged inside tumours, and enzalutamide, a hormone therapy commonly used to treat prostate cancer.

Five patients showed evidence of their tumours responding to the combination. Their tumours shrunk by more than 30%, they experienced decreases in circulating levels of PSA, or their blood levels of circulating tumour cells dropped.

Read the full article published in The Guardian here.

Howard Wolinsky, a medical journalist and a prostate cancer patient and advocate for several years, has written an article entitled ‘Should older prostate cancer patients jump off the active surveillance train?’ asking whether he should stop being on active surveillance, now he is aged 76.
He asked 16 urologists from five countries what they would recommend. The majority favoured him staying on the AS course with annual or semi-annual PSA tests, with possibly an MRI or marker test.

The article concluded that guidelines are needed for men of all ages.

Europa Uomo has launched the EU-ProPER (Europa Uomo Prostate cancer Partners in Europe Research) study (see news story above). It will attempt to capture the experiences of those closest to men with prostate cancer, identify the issues affecting them, and set an agenda for action to support them.

The whole project centres around an online survey for spouses, partners and caregivers, asking simple questions about how their partner’s prostate cancer has affected them. The survey is available in 17 languages.

WE NEED YOUR HELP in publicising the study. Europa Uomo has published a range of materials to help build awareness of the survey. You can access the publicity materials here. Anything you can do to bring this to the attention of men and women with prostate cancer would be much appreciated.

The BDSwiss 3rd Blue Route, held by Europa Uomo Cyprus in collaboration with the cycling association Kilomeaters and the Municipality of Limassol, was a great success. A thousand cyclists of all ages participated in the bicycle ride through the city of Limassol on 8th October. The event was held under the auspices of the Deputy Minister of Shipping, Marina Chatzimanolis.

Through the event, Europa Uomo Cyprus was able to shine a spotlight on the critical fight against prostate cancer and provide invaluable information to the public. The support and contributions from all their sponsors and supporters played an important role in raising awareness.

You can a video of the event here, and can also browse through the event photos that capture the spirit of the day.

On Saturday, 28th October, Active Surveillance Patients International (ASPI) will honour trailblazer and founding ASPI board member Thrainn Thorvaldsson with its first Patient Advocacy Award. Thrainn was ahead of his time in creating support and education groups for men on AS in his native Iceland and internationally through ASPI. Within Europa Uomo, Thrainn is the vice-chairman of the Icelandic Europa Uomo member group ‘Framför”. Several guest speakers will speak about Thrainn’s contribution.

Register here.

The European Patients Forum (EPF) has recently released its Position Paper on AI in Healthcare. This explores the applications, benefits, and challenges associated with artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare from a patient perspective, and provides key recommendations for a responsible deployment of AI solutions.