Prostatic fatty acids and cancer recurrence after radical prostatectomy for early-stage prostate cancer.
OBJECTIVE
Results from some observational studies suggest that diet and energy balance influence the clinical course of early-stage prostate cancer. To evaluate possible mechanisms, we prospectively examined the relation between prostatic concentrations of fatty acids at diagnosis and cancer recurrence following primary therapy.


METHODS
Fatty acids were measured by capillary gas chromatography in fresh, non-cancerous prostate tissue collected from 184 men undergoing radical prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate cancer. Their association with risk of biochemical disease recurrence (a rising serum prostate-specific antigen following a disease-free [<0.1 ng/ml] interval > or =6 months) was analyzed using Cox proportional hazards models incorporating patient age, body mass index, tumor characteristics at diagnosis, and ethnicity.


RESULTS
During an average follow-up of 48.7 months (median = 47), 14 patients experienced biochemical recurrence. Percent total polyunsaturated fatty acid and the ratio of oleic-to-stearic acid associated with risk (multivariable hazards ratio [HR] = 0.51, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.29 to 0.90, p = 0.021 and HR = 1.68, 95% CI = 1.21 to 2.33, p = 0.002, respectively, per 1 standard deviation increase).


CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study are preliminary, but they suggest that pre-diagnostic prostatic concentrations of fatty acids associate with risk of biochemical recurrence following radical prostatectomy for clinically localized prostate cancer.
Freeman
Vincent L
VL
Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612-4336, USA. freem981@uic.edu
Flanigan
Robert C
RC
Meydani
Mohsen
M
D001741:Black or African American; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D015331:Cohort Studies; D018572:Disease-Free Survival; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D007087:Illinois / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000453:epidemiology; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D011467:Prostate / Q000737:chemistry*; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen / Q000097:blood; D011468:Prostatectomy; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D012306:Risk; D044465:White People
D005227:Fatty Acids; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen