Can FSH Levels Influence Oncogenic and Cardiovascular Outcomes in Men With Prostate Cancer?
Posted: Thursday, September 23, 2021
Paul Toren, MD, PhD, of Universitè Laval, CHU de Quèbec Research Center, Canada, and colleagues conducted a study to determine whether there was a correlation between follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) levels and long-term cardiovascular and oncologic outcomes in patients treated with radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer. Their research, which found no such correlation, was published in the Asian Journal of Andrology and suggested that further studies on the significance of FSH levels be pursued.
The investigators focused on 503 patients with prostate cancer who underwent radical prostatectomy. Data on cardiovascular events, FSH levels, and sex steroid levels were obtained from Hotel-Dieu de Québec Hospital and the Institut Universitaire Cardiologie et Pneumologie de Québec.
The median patient age was 64, and the median follow-up was 13.1 years. Among the 503 total patients, 492 had cryopreserved plasma available for FSH analysis. A majority of participants (68.3%) had Gleason Grade Group 2 or higher, and the median FSH level was 6.10 mIU/mL. Biochemical recurrence was reported in 151 individuals, at a median time of 15 months, although multivariable Cox regression analysis found no correlation between FSH levels and outcomes of prostate cancer.
Less than a quarter of patients (23%) died during follow-up, with prostate cancer considered to be the cause of death in 15 individuals. A negative correlation between dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate levels and FSH levels was observed. Age (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.07) and Charlson Comorbidity Index (HR = 2.57) seemed to predict overall survival; although FSH levels did not significantly affect overall survival, they were observed to increase with age (P = .002). Of note, major adverse cardiovascular events were reported in 50 patients (10.2%), with an average time to the first event of 8.8 years.
Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit ajandrology.com
