how long is the optimal duration of neoadjuvant treatment for prostate cancer before radiation?
OBJECTIVES: To clarify the morphological alteration of prostate and seminal vesicles (SV) quantitatively after testosterone ablation, we investigated the prostate volume (PV) and the SV volume (SVV) using transrectal ultrasonography. METHODS: Between July 2002 and October 2004, we prospectively investigated 29 prostate cancer patients. The medical castration group included 21 patients (42 SV and 21 prostate; median Gleason sum, 74 years) who were diagnosed as having T1b to T3aN0M0 prostate cancer and underwent androgen ablation with a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) analogue and chlormadinone acetate. As normal controls, 8 patients (16 SV and 8 prostate; median age, 68.5 years) with T1aN0M0 prostate cancer without any other additional treatment were enrolled in this study. We measured both PV and SVV in these groups with transrectal ultrasonography. RESULTS: Both PV and SVV significantly decreased in the medical castration group (PV: 28.4 +/- 9.3 mL to 17.0 +/- 5.3 mL, SV
