Vivien Thomas: His Legacy and Lessons.

Vivien Thomas was born into humble beginnings in Iberia, Louisiana in 1910. The circumstances of that era prevented him from achieving his goal of attending medical school. He became a surgical research technician at Vanderbilt Medical School.

The Prostate as an Endocrine Organ: Its Modulation of Serum Testosterone.

Aside from nonmelanoma skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men in the United States, and benign prostatic hyperplasia is the most common benign tumor found in men. Until recently, its endocrine functions and possible influence on the hypothalamic-pituitary axis have been relatively understudied. This review summarizes the current understanding of the potential endocrine functions of prostate cancer and benign prostate tissue.

The Inexorable March of Prostate Cancer Research: Testosterone and Beyond.

The history of prostate cancer treatment is filled with progress over the past 120 years. The understanding of the role of testosterone in the genesis of prostate cancer continues to evolve. Diagnostic testing and the treatment of localized and metastatic prostate cancer have undergone major changes over recent decades and have transformed the outlook for patients with prostate cancer.

William B. Coley: His Hypothesis, His Toxin, and the Birth of Immunotherapy.

In recent years, immunotherapy has been the focus of great interest to researchers, clinicians, and the general public. Traditionally cancer therapy has been thought to be limited to surgery, radiation therapy, or chemotherapy. Some clinicians have considered it the so-called fifth pillar of cancer therapy, following surgery, cytotoxic chemotherapy, radiation, and targeted therapy.

The Emerging Role and Promise of Biomarkers in Penile Cancer.

Penile cancer is a rare malignancy, which can be a source of devastating psychosexual distress because of its implication on sexual function and self-image. Current penile staging relies on invasive techniques and is often inaccurate. The authors review the promising biomarkers currently under investigation and their application to the staging and prognosis of penile cancer.

The relationship between total testosterone levels and prostate cancer: a review of the continuing controversy.

Purpose: For many years it was believed that higher total testosterone contributed to prostate cancer and caused rapid cancer growth. International guidelines consider that adequate data are not available to determine whether there is additional risk of prostate cancer from testosterone replacement. Numerous studies with multiple designs and contradictory conclusions have investigated the relationship between total testosterone and prostate cancer development.

PSA velocity: a systematic review of clinical applications.

Background: The value of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) for screening and management of prostate cancer (CaP) continues to engender much controversy in the medical and lay literature. This review is intended to critically analyze the literature to assess the utility of adding the calculation of PSA velocity (PSAV) in the screening and management of CaP.

Methods: A systematic review of electronic databases including Medline PaperChase, PubMed, and Scopus was conducted to identify English-language studies in the peer-reviewed literature from 1992 to 2013.

Calcium channel blockers and prostate cancer.

The relationship between calcium channel blockers and prostate cancer has been an area of increased interest to investigators. Calcium channel blockers have been shown to influence cell proliferation, differentiation, and apoptosis. Clinically, the association between calcium channel blockers and the development of prostate cancer has been controversial.