The Excretion of 17-ketosteroids in Carcinoma of the Prostate

Abstract

In view of the observation that bilateral orchidectomy has beneficial effects in many cases of carcinoma of the prostate the total excretion of urinary 17-ketosteroids has been detd. in 16 cases of carcinoma of the prostate and compared with that of 8 controls in a similar age group. Five of the patients with carcinoma had been castrated 10-24 mos. previously. In all cases, the total 17-ketosteroids were separated into [alpha] and [beta] fractions, since the literature contains suggestions that such separations may be of clinical importance. The results indicate that the total 17-keto-steroid excretion in older men is less than in[male] [male] between the ages of 20 and 40, but that the cases with carcinoma of the prostate do not differ from control cases of a similar age group. There also is no significant difference in the relative amts. of [alpha] and [beta] fractions present in the patients with and without carcinoma of the prostate. The patients with carcinoma of the prostate who had been castrated 10-24 mos. previously and in whom there had been a recrudescence of the disease showed no differences in 17-ketosteroid excretion from the untreated cases.