The Relationship Between Prostate Cancer and Stress

(Ivanhoe Newswire) – In 2012, there were over 200,000 new cases of prostate cancer in the United States and over 28,000 deaths.  Now, new research has found that men who take drugs that interfere with stress hormone adrenaline have a lower incidence of prostate cancer!

Researchers at Wake Forest University examined the relationship between stress and cancer progression in mice with prostate cancer.

George Kulik and his colleagues found that mice who have been subjected to stress, in their case they were exposed to the scent of a predator, had a noticeably reduced response to a drug that induces cancer cell death compared to the control mice.
 
The administration of the adrenaline also blocked cancer cell death.  Drugs that inhibit adrenaline signal effects of stress on prostate cancer. 

Researchers believe that their findings suggest that beta-blockers, which are used for the treatment of high blood pressure and block adrenaline effects, could increase the efficacy of anti-cancer therapies. 

SOURCE:  Journal of Clinical Investigation, January 2013