Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “CASTRATION”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 1,099 records · Page 61Linked to original sources

Insulin-like growth factor binding protein 5 is associated with involution of the ventral prostate in castrated and finasteride-treated rats.

BACKGROUND: Insulin-like growth factor binding protein (IGFBP)-5 has been proposed as a signal for apoptosis in the ovary. To determine the relationship between IGFBP-5 and apoptosis during regression of the androgen-deprived prostate, rats were castrated or treated with the 5alpha-reductase inhibitor finasteride for 4, 9, 14, 21, and 28 days. METHODS: Ventral prostate tissue was immunostained for IGFBP-5, and apoptotic cells were identified by in situ end-labeling of fragmented DNA (TUNEL). To compare the distribution of IGFBP-5 with the distribution of apoptotic cells, mirror-image serial sections of prostate tissues from normal and day 4 finasteride-treated rats were examined. RESULTS: In normal rats, 4+/-1% of prostate epithelial cells stained positively for IGFBP-5, and 0.1+/-0.03% demonstrated DNA fragmentation. IGFBP-5 staining peaked at day 9 with 93 +/-2% and 64+/-13% of epithelial cells staining positively in castrated and finasteride-treated rats, respectively. In contrast, DNA fragmentation peaked at day 4 in tissues from both castrated and finasteride-treated rats with 7+/-1% and 0.7+/-0.3% of epithelial cells, respectively, staining. In the serial sections, TUNEL and IGFBP-5 staining were not usually expressed in the same cells. CONCLUSIONS: Prostatic involution involves both programmed cell death and inhibition of cell growth. Because of the distribution of staining and the delayed expression of IGFBP-5 relative to initiation of apoptosis, we postulate that IGFBP-5 functions as an inhibitor of cell proliferation rather than as a signal for apoptosis.

Animals↗

Effects of sandostatin, alone and in combination with surgical castration, on pancreatic carcinogenesis in rats and hamsters.

In a previous short-term study (4 months) we found that Sandostatin, when administered prophylactically, inhibited growth of putative pre-neoplastic ductular lesions induced in hamster pancreas by N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl)amine (BOP), but not of acinar lesions induced in rat pancreas by azaserine. The present long-term (12 months) study was carried out to investigate the effects of Sandostatin (3 microgram/day), alone and in combination with orchiectomy, on pancreatic carcinogenesis in azaserine-treated rats and BOP-treated hamsters. In order to mimic therapy in humans, treatment of the animals started 4 months after the last injection with carcinogen, when (pre)neoplastic lesions had already developed. After treatment with Sandostatin for 8 months, rats developed fewer pancreatic atypical acinar cell nodules and tumours than those not treated with Sandostatin. Moreover, multiplicity of (pre)neoplastic acinar lesions was also lower in orchiectomized rats than in intact rats. However, Sandostatin treatment did not enhance the inhibitory effect of surgical castration on pancreatic carcinogenesis in rats. In hamsters that were both orchiectomized and treated with Sandostatin, the development of borderline lesions was significantly inhibited, whereas such an effect was not present in hamsters that were either surgically castrated or treated with Sandostatin alone. In Sandostatin-treated hamsters a significantly lower number of microcarcinomas was found than in hamsters not treated with Sandostatin. The present findings suggest that Sandostatin, particularly in combination with surgical castration, might be of therapeutic value for treatment of ductular pancreatic tumours.

Animals↗

Neuroendocrine cells and nerves in the prostate of the guinea pig: effects of peripheral denervation and castration.

BACKGROUND: Neuroendocrine (NE) cells and nerves in the prostate gland are thought to play a central role in the regulation of growth, cellular differentiation and homeostasis of secretory activity. The objective of this experimental study was to describe the effects of peripheral denervation and castration on NE cells and nerves in the guinea pig prostate. METHODS: Guinea pigs underwent sham-operation, unilateral and bilateral hypogastric nerve resection, extirpation of the right anterior major pelvic ganglion (AMPG), autotransplantation of prostatic tissue and castration. Cryostat sections of prostatic tissue were examined with immunohistochemistry by using serotonin (5-HT) and chromogranin A (CgA) and various neuropeptides. RESULTS: The number of 5-HT-IR NE cells was four-fold higher than CgA-IR NE cells. The innervation pattern was uniform throughout the gland with subepithelial nerves in close proximity to NE cells. Autotransplants of prostatic tissue showed total loss of nerves, but the number and morphology of 5-HT-IR NE cells were unaltered. Extirpation of the right AMPG showed significant reduction in prostate weight, decreased density of nerve terminals in the superior part of the ipsilateral prostate, whereas the number and morphological feature of 5-HT-IR NE cells remained unaffected in the entire prostate. Castration induced atrophy of the gland with a significant reduction in weight (unpaired t-test, P < 0.001), but without effect upon 5-HT-IR NE cells. CONCLUSIONS: The guinea pig seems to be a useful animal model for studies on the role of the NE cells in the prostate. NE cells seem to be independent of innervation and androgens. It seems that other factors influence the NE cell population to a greater extent.

Animals↗

Intercellular communication within the rat anterior pituitary gland. II. Castration effects and changes after injection of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) or testosterone.

This study investigated the relationship between gap junction formation and sex steroids in the male rat anterior pituitary gland. Animals were castrated at 5 days of age and separated into the following three groups: 1) oil-treated controls, 2) those injected with LH-RH, and 3) those given testosterone. On days 10, 20, 30, and 40, five rats in each group were sacrificed and their hypophyses removed for ultrastructural examination. When compared with age-matched, intact animals, there was a marked suppression in follicular development and in the number of gap junctions present in the pituitary glands of both the castrated controls as well as the castrates given luteinizing hormone releasing hormone (LH-RH). In contrast, the morphology of these structures in the animals given testosterone was indistinguishable from that observed in the intact controls. These observations provide more definitive evidence that in the male rat pituitary gland maturation of the structural organization of the follicles, including gap junction formation, requires an intact hypophyseal-gonadal axis and is highly dependent on the hormone testosterone.

Animals↗

Increase in motoneurons in the spinal nucleus of the bulbocavernosus of prepubertally castrated male Mongolian gerbils following delayed treatment with testosterone.

Sexual dimorphism in the spinal nucleus of the bulbocavernosus (SNB) of the Mongolian gerbil is achieved by two periods of postnatal increase, one in the first month after birth and one at puberty. The pubertal increase in motoneuron number is of particular interest because it occurs in a nearly adult animal. The purpose of this research was threefold. The first was to determine the response of the SNB in prepubertally castrated male gerbils receiving delayed hormone replacement as adults. Testosterone propionate (TP) treatment resulted in numbers of SNB motoneurons comparable to those seen in intact males, whereas androgen metabolites were less effective. The second purpose was to determine the latency of motoneurons to appear in response to TP. New SNB motoneurons appeared within 2 days of delayed TP replacement in prepubertally castrated males, and 16 days of treatment did not further increase SNB motoneuron numbers. The response of the motoneurons to TP appeared more rapid than the response of the bulbocavernosus (BC) muscle, scent gland, and seminal vesicles. The third purpose was to determine whether the new cells were connected to a target muscle. After 16 days of TP treatment, more motoneurons were labeled in the SNB following injection of a retrograde tract tracer into the BC muscle compared with the number seen in control animals. Thus, new motoneurons appeared in the SNB of prepubertally castrated male Mongolian gerbils within 2 days of the start of delayed TP treatment and were connected to a target within 16 days of TP treatment.

Animals↗

Effects of aminoglutethimide, alone and in combination with surgical castration, on pancreatic carcinogenesis in rats and hamsters.

The present 12-month study was carried out to investigate the effects of the aromatase inhibitor aminoglutethimide, alone and in combination with orchiectomy, on pancreatic carcinogenesis in azaserine-treated rats and N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl)-amine-treated hamsters. Treatment of the animals started 4 months after the last injection with the carcinogen. They were surgically castrated and/or treated with aminoglutethimide. Aminoglutethimide-treated rats developed less pancreatic tumours than did untreated controls. Multiplicity of (pre-)-neoplastic acinar lesions was lower in orchiectomized rats than in intact rats. Inhibition of pancreatic carcinogenesis was most pronounced in rats that were both orchiectomized and treated with aminoglutethimide. These effects were statistically significant after 8 months, but not after 4 months, of treatment. In hamsters, aminoglutethimide showed an enhancing rather than an inhibitory effect on the formation of ductular pancreatic tumours. Castration appeared to have no effect on the development of N-nitrosobis(2-oxopropyl)amine-induced ductular lesions in the pancreas, either alone, or in combination with aminoglutethimide. The present findings indicate that aminoglutethimide, alone and in combination with surgical castration, might be of value for the treatment of pancreatic acinar tumours, whereas the usefulness of aminoglutethimide for treatment of ductular adenocarcinomas of the pancreas is somewhat doubtful.

Aminoglutethimide↗

Castration-like effects on the human prostate of a 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor, finasteride.

Epidemiological studies strongly support the contention that surgical castration prior to age forty prevents both benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH) and prostate cancer. 5 alpha-Reductase deficiency in humans, an experiment of nature, is an uncommon genetically transmitted disorder in which prostate size remains very small throughout adult life. A 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor, finasteride, has recently been shown in double-blind, placebo-controlled trials in patients with BPH to statistically decrease prostate size and improve clinical symptoms in comparison to placebo controls. In the untreated BPH prostate, tissue levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and testosterone (T) averaged 4.2 and 0.2 ng/g, respectively. Following one week of finasteride therapy, T levels rose to a mean of 1.32 ng/g while DHT levels decreased to 0.62 ng/g. These values contrast with values in prostate tissue from surgical castrates in which DHT and T values average 1.14 ng/g and 0.1 ng/g, respectively. If we use the relative binding affinity of T and DHT to the androgen receptor as a criterion of biological androgen potency, T would appear to be one-fourth as potent as DHT. Using this 1:4 ratio to convert prostatic T to a biologically equivalent amount of prostatic DHT, the total biologically active DHT equivalent in the prostate following one week of finasteride averages 0.95 ng/g compared to a mean of 1.14 ng/g in surgical castrates.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

5-alpha Reductase Inhibitors↗

Bromocriptine prevents the castration-induced rise in porphyrin concentration in the harderian glands of the male Syrian hamster, Mesocricetus auratus.

The Harderian glands in Syrian hamsters exhibit a striking sexual dimorphism. Male Harderian glands show two cell types and low levels of porphyrins and melatonin. Of the enzymes involved in the synthesis of melatonin, N-acetyltransferase (NAT) and hydroxyindole-O-methyltransferase (HIOMT) show high and low activity levels, respectively. Female Harderian glands show but one cell type and have high porphyrin and melatonin levels, low NAT activity, and high HIOMT activity. In castrated males, the Harderian glands exhibit a female pattern of morphology, porphyrin levels, and indoleamine metabolism. In an attempt to determine whether prolactin in involved in this sexually dimorphic response of the Harderian glands, intact and castrated male and intact female hamsters were injected daily with 500 micrograms of bromocriptine, a dopamine agonist. Bromocriptine led to reduced serum prolactin levels in all groups. It had no apparent effect on the Harderian glands of intact males. In contrast, in castrated males bromocriptine prevented the postcastrational rise in porphyrin levels but had no effect on NAT or HIOMT activities. In females, bromocriptine treatment had no effect on porphyrin concentrations or HIOMT activity; it led to a statistically significant increase in NAT activity. We propose that testosterone inhibits Harderian porphyrin synthesis while dopamine or prolactin stimulates it.

Animals↗

Effects of castration on antler growth in fallow deer (Dama dama L.).

Morphology and histological structure of antlers grown after castration (performed on March 25) were studied in six young fallow bucks. In the year after castration, antlerogenesis occurred during the species-specific time span, and the shape of the antlers, which remained permanently in velvet, was normal. During a cold period in December/January, the distal parts of the antlers suffered from frostbite and were subsequently detached. The process of sequestration was similar to that leading to normal antler casting. The sequestration sites were soon covered with skin, but (limited) regrowth of antler tissue from the stumps was not observed before late April/early May, i.e., the time of normal antler regeneration. Simultaneously, growth of knobby protuberances started on the surface of the antlers. Histological analysis of biopsies taken on December 20 in the year after castration revealed that the central parts of the antlers consisted of cancellous lamellar bone with mainly secondary osteons. Peripheral to this, the bone tissue (forming the protuberances) was of a more immature nature and exhibited larger intertrabecular spaces. The outermost layer consisted of woven bone formed by intramembranous ossification from the periosteum and was undergoing active growth and remodeling at the time of biopsy. Thus, bone formation at these sites occurred during a period when no antler growth is observed in normal fallow bucks. The velvet covering the bony protuberances was of normal appearance.

Animals↗

Castration and antisteroid treatment impair vocal learning in male zebra finches.

Both song behavior and its neural substrate are hormone sensitive: castrated adult male zebra finches need replacement of gonadal steroids in order to restore normal levels of song production, and sex steroids are necessary to establish male-typical neural song-control circuits during early development. This pattern of results suggests that hormones may be required for normal development of learned song behavior, but evidence that steroids are necessary for normal neural and behavioral development during song learning has been lacking. We addressed this question by attempting to eliminate the effects of gonadal steroids in juvenile male zebra finches between the time of initial song production and adulthood. Males were castrated at 20 days of age and received systemic implants of either an antiandrogen (flutamide), an antiestrogen (tamoxifen), or both drugs. The songs of both flutamide- and tamoxifen-treated birds were extremely disrupted relative to normal controls in terms of the stereotypy and acoustic quality of individual note production, as well as stereotypy of the temporal structure of the song phrase. We did not discern any differences in the pattern of behavioral disruption between birds that were treated with either flutamide, tamoxifen, or a combination of both drugs. Flutamide treatment resulted in a reduced size of two forebrain nuclei that are known to play some role unique to early phases of song learning [lateral magnocellular nucleus of the anterior neostriatum (IMAN) and area X (X)], but did not affect the size of two song-control nuclei that are necessary for normal song production in adult birds [caudal nucleus of the ventral hyperstriatum (HVc) and robust nucleus of the archistriatum (RA)]. In contrast, treatment with tamoxifen did not result in any changes in the size of song-control nuclei relative to normal controls, and it blocked the effects of flutamide on the neural song-control system in birds that were treated with both drugs. Castration and antisteroid treatment exerted no deleterious effects on the quality of song behavior in adult birds, indicating that gonadal hormones are necessary for the development of normal song behavior during a sensitive period.

Aging↗

Hypertrophy of gonadotropin releasing hormone-containing neurons after castration in the teleost, Haplochromis burtoni.

In the African cichlid fish, Haplochromis burtoni, males are either territorial or nonterritorial. Territorial males suppress reproductive function in the nonterritorial males, and have larger gonads and larger gonadotropin-releasing hormone- (GnRH) containing neurons in the preoptic area (POA). We describe an experiment designed to establish the causal relationship between large GnRH neurons and large testes in these males by determining the feedback effects of gonadal sex steroids on the GnRH neurons. Territorial males were either castrated or sham-operated, 4 weeks after which they were sacrificed. Circulating steroid levels were measured, and the GnRH-containing neurons were visualized by staining sagittal sections of the brains with an antibody to salmon GnRH. The soma areas of antibody-stained neurons were measured with a computer-aided imaging system. Completely castrated males had markedly reduced levels of circulating sex steroids [11-ketotestosterone (11KT) and testosterone (T)], as well as 17 beta-estradiol (E2). POA GnRH neurons in castrates showed a significant increase in mean soma size relative to the intact territorial males. Hence, in mature animals, gonadal steroids act as a brake on the growth of GnRH-containing neurons, and gonadal products are not responsible for the large GnRH neurons characteristic of territorial males.

Animals↗

Intracellular partitioning of androgen receptor immunoreactivity in the brain of the male Syrian hamster: effects of castration and steroid replacement.

The effect of castration and steroid replacement on the intracellular partitioning of the androgen receptor in the brain of the male Syrian hamster was determined using immunocytochemistry. Androgen receptors were visualized using the PG-21 antibody (G. S. Prins) on 40-microns coronal brain sections from hamsters perfused with 4% paraformaldehyde with or without 0.4% glutaraldehyde. Control studies confirmed antibody specificity in gonad-intact and castrate males. In the normal adult male, androgen receptor immunocytochemistry reveals intense staining confined to the cell nucleus. Castration caused a gradual increase in cytoplasmic labelling within 2 weeks, accompanied by a reduction in nuclear staining intensity in androgen receptor-containing neurons throughout the brain. Cytoplasmic androgen receptor staining was eliminated after treatment of orchidectomized males for only 8 h with exogenous testosterone. Likewise, long-term exposure to testosterone and dihydrotestosterone, a nonaromatizable androgen, maintained nuclear androgen receptor immunoreactivity. However, exposure to low physiologic concentrations of estrogen was not effective in this regard. In addition, we determined that nuclear androgen receptor immunoreactivity decreases in response to inhibitory short-day photoperiod, but without an increase in cytoplasmic immunostaining. This appears to be due to the decrease in androgen production by the testis, rather than a direct photoperiodic effect, because testosterone supplementation to short-day males restored the intensity of nuclear androgen receptor immunoreactivity to levels comparable to those in the intact male. These findings are compatible with a new model for the intracellular localization of androgen receptors, in which a subset of unoccupied receptors is located in the cell cytoplasm in the absence of ligand. They further demonstrate the repartitioning of such cytoplasmic receptors, thereby confirming and extending previous observations using biochemical techniques on the regulation of neuronal androgen receptors.

Animals↗

Effect of age, castration, and testosterone replacement on the development and restoration of canine benign prostatic hyperplasia.

An experiment was designed to test the effect of castration and testosterone replacement on the development of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in young and on the restoration of BPH in old beagles. Twenty beagles were divided by age into young (1.5-2.5-yr) and old (6.0-8.5-yr) groups. Each of these groups was further divided randomly into two additional groups of age-matched, intact, untreated control and castrate beagles. The latter were then treated with testosterone-filled Silastic implants designed to clamp serum testosterone at concentrations similar to those observed in adult beagles for 7 months beginning 5 months after castration. Histopathologic characterization of each prostate was completed on biopsy material obtained at the beginning and end of the experiment. Prostate weights were determined each month for 12 months via a noninvasive two-dimensional X-ray procedure. Testosterone treatment for 7 months allowed BPH to develop in young and restored BPH in old beagles. These results suggest that testosterone in the adult beagle acts permissively to allow BPH to develop in the prostate of the aging dog. Some other testicular product may be required for the continued growth of BPH in aged beagles.

Age Factors↗

Light microscopic morphometric analysis of castration effects in the different lobes of the rat prostate.

The morphologic effects of androgen deprivation in the different lobes of the rat prostate were examined by light microscopic morphometry. The prostates of Wistar male rats (260-340 g) were fixed in situ by glutaraldehyde perfusion in castrated animals 1 week after gonadectomy and in intact animals. The ventral (VP), dorsal (DP), and lateral (LP) lobes as well as the coagulating gland (CG) were dissected out, weighed, and processed for light microscopy. Using stereologic methods the following parameters were estimated for each lobe: volume fraction of connective tissue, epithelium and glandular lumina, average epithelial height, average epithelial cell volume, and total number of epithelial cells. Castration leads to a 58-76% reduction of the wet weight of all prostatic lobes. The decrease of glandular tissue is greater in VP than in LP, DP, and CG. In VP and LP, there is a 39-45% reduction of the epithelial height, and this effect is less pronounced in DP and CG. For all lobes, the shrinkage of average epithelial cell volume is in the same range (25-30%). Moreover, in VP and LP, there is a 70% reduction of the total number of cells, whereas the reduction is less in DP and CG. It thus seems that the reduction of prostatic epithelial tissue mass upon castration is due to a reduction of the number of cells as well as a reduction of the volume of individual cells. VP and LP appear to be more androgen-dependent than DP and CG.

Animals↗

Dose-dependent hormonal induction of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in castrated dogs.

A model for the dose-dependent hormonal induction of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in castrated dogs has been established using subcutaneously implanted Silastic capsules containing 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha, 17 beta-diol (3 alpha-diol) and estradiol-17 beta. In vivo release rates per capsule approximated 122.0 +/- 4.2 micrograms 3 alpha-diol and 22.7 +/- 0.8 micrograms estradiol per day based on in vitro studies and resulted in dose-dependent increases in serum 3 alpha-diol and dihydrotestosterone concentrations. The implantation of castrated dogs with either 10 or 20 Silastic capsules containing 3 alpha-diol and one capsule containing estradiol or the intramuscular injection of 3 alpha-diol (75 mg/week) and estradiol (0.75 mg/week) for 99 days significantly increased (P less than .01) prostatic weights and total prostatic DNA over intact controls. These treatments also resulted in a histomorphological pattern similar to that observed in dogs with the glandular form of spontaneous BPH. In addition, normal prostatic secretory function as determined by semen volume was maintained in these dogs. Although subcutaneous implantation of five Silastic capsules containing 3 alpha-diol and one capsule containing estradiol into castrated dogs resulted in prostatic weights and total prostatic DNA that were similar (P less than .10) to intact controls, these prostates were characterized histomorphologically by glandular atrophy and squamous metaplasia. Furthermore, prostatic secretory function was decreased (P less than .05) in these animals compared with intact controls at 3 months of treatment. This study has led to the development of a model of steroid-induced BPH that will facilitate the evaluation of competitive androgen-receptor antagonists in the dog.

Androstane-3,17-diol↗

Characterization of castration-induced cell death in the rat prostate by immunohistochemical localization of cathepsin D.

Activities of cathepsin D (EC 3.4.23.5) were determined in three lobes of the prostate during their involution by both biochemical and immunohistochemical procedures. The activity of cathepsin D in noncastrated rats was 0.9 +/- 0.2 (mean +/- SE) 5.7 +/- 0.6, and 13.1 +/- 0.8 units/mg protein for the ventral, lateral, dorsal lobes, respectively. Following castration, there was a significant increase in enzymatic activity in all three lobes within 2-3 days. In the ventral lobe, the activity peaked in 5 days to 6.2 +/- 0.9 units/mg protein and declined slightly thereafter. In the lateral and dorsal lobes, the activity remained elevated (14-20 units/mg protein) throughout the postcastration period studied. Immunohistochemical staining of cathepsin D was localized in the cytoplasm of prostatic epithelial cells as fine discrete lysosomal granules. These granules were larger and more abundant in the dorsal and lateral lobes than in the ventral lobe and were not detected in prostatic stromal cells and seldom in the luminal fluid. Castration resulted in an immediate increase in the size and number of these granules in the epithelial cells, followed by a sudden further increase in cathepsin D staining in some but not all epithelial cells. Lysosomal granules gradually coalesced in these cells to form large vacuoles that fit the characteristic description of apoptotic bodies. Finally, after day 7 postcastration, collapse and disintegration of the entire glandular structure was noted. Using this procedure to localize cathepsin D as a tool, we were able to follow the morphological events of prostatic cell death during castration-induced involution in the rat at the light microscopic level.

Analysis of Variance↗

Castration-induced changes in morphology, androgen levels, and proliferative activity of human prostate cancer tissue grown in athymic nude mice.

The transplantable human prostate tumor lines PC-82 and PC-EW regress after androgen depletion. The castration-induced decline in tumor volume was faster in the PC-EW tumor (half-life 6 days) than in the PC-82 tumor (half-life 18 days), despite similar castrate androgen levels of less than 3 pmol/g tissue. Androgen ablation of the PC-82 tumor induced a wave of apoptosis, whereas in the PC-EW tumor, necrotic cell death was predominantly observed. The proliferative activity (BrdU index) of PC-82 and PC-EW tumor tissue declined from 3% to less than 1% after castration. After androgen depletion, some proliferative activity remained, the major part of which was localized in the (murine) stromal compartment of the tumors. In contrast to the PC-EW tumors, regrowth of androgen-ablated PC-82 tumors was rapidly induced by androgen resubstitution. The differences in response of these tumor models to androgen depletion and repletion appear to be related to the putative involvement of different cell death pathways. The role of the stroma in these processes is unclear.

Animals↗

Kinetic analysis of focal hypoechoic lesion in the prostate treated by castration.

Dynamic changes in the focal hypoehoic lesion (FHL) in the prostate, visualized by transrectal sonography (TRS), were determined in five patients with prostatic cancer (PC) after treatment by castration. In all cases, the volume of FHL, as well as the volume of the whole prostate, decreased exponentially after castration. In four out of five cases, the volume (not including the FHL, which might suggest the volume of the normal tissues) increased slightly in the early postoperative weeks, and decreased thereafter. In the remaining one case, it decreased consecutively. According to the formula established in our previous study, the reduction time (tau) of the volume of the whole prostate and of the volume of the FHL was calculated, indicating that the tau of the FHL was remarkably shorter than that of the volume not indicating the FHL. This evidence suggested that not only the cancerous tissues but also the normal prostatic tissues might reduce in volume after castration.

Adenocarcinoma↗