Poorer prognosis of Prostate cancer in men with Diabetes

It is well known that Prostate cancer and type 2 diabetes are among the most common diseases in men. The studies indicate that people with diabetes suffer more frequently from cancers , but men with diabetes do not increasingly suffer from prostate cancer.Researchers of the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) from Tübingen and experts of Helmholtz Zentrum München and the Urology Department of Tübingen University Hospital have shown that patients with diabetes have a poorer prognosis for prostate cancer. The possible explanation of the same is that in affected individuals the androgen receptor and the mitogenic forms of the insulin receptor were more strongly expressed.The results of the study have been published in the journals Molecular Metabolism and Endocrine-Related Cancer.

Although studies indicate that people with diabetes suffer more frequently from cancer, men with diabetes do not increasingly suffer from prostate cancer. On the contrary, meta-analyses of studies have shown that diabetes patients are less likely to develop this carcinoma. However, the mortality rate is higher. This is also confirmed by current research carried out by researchers at the Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases (IDM) of Helmholtz Zentrum München at the University of Tübingen, a partner of the DZD, in cooperation with the Department of Urology at Tübingen University Hospital. The research team recently analyzed the data of patients who had their prostate removed due to cancer. As expected, among them were fewer patients with diabetes than in the general population. However, prostate cancer patients with diabetes were significantly more likely to have metastases in the lymph nodes. In addition, the proportion of patients who are at very high risk according to the guidelines of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) was significantly higher among those with diabetes.