Skip to main content

Estrogen Patches: A Novel Prostate Cancer Treatment

TOP - Daily

Patches suppress testosterone in men

The estrogen patches often used to treat menopause symptoms in women could be a simple and safe alternative to the hormone therapies used to treat prostate cancer in men, according to new research.

In a study led by researchers at Imperial College London, scientists compared the benefits and side effects of standard prostate cancer treatment, LHRHa injections, and the estrogen patches.

Results of the trial that included 254 men with locally advanced or metastasized prostate cancer showed similar suppression of testosterone by both the patches and LHRHa injections. Furthermore, when compared with the men being treated with estrogen patches, those receiving LHRHa injections exhibited elevated blood glucose and cholesterol levels, which can lead to heart disease.

According to Dr Ruth Langley, study author from the Medical Research Council Clinical Trials Unit, “These promising new findings suggest that we might be able to use estrogen patches or an estrogen gel to treat prostate cancer without significantly increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke.”

The study is published in the Lancet Oncology.

Source: Cancer Research UK.