[Clinical study of endocrine therapy in stage B and C prostate cancer]

To evaluate the usefulness of endocrine therapy for stage B and C prostate cancer, we carried out a retrospective study on overall survival rate, cause-specific survival, PSA recurrence-free rate, and their predictive factors in 118 patients with stage B prostate cancer, 61 with stage C prostate cancer who underwent endocrine therapy at our department between 1985 and 2001. The cause-specific survival rate and PSA recurrence-free rate of stage B patients who underwent endocrine therapy were well, and they will take a good clinical course. Thus, in this stage of prostate cancer, aged patients and patients with complications may be good candidates for endocrine therapy. The cause-specific survival rate and PSA recurrence-free rate in the stage C patients who underwent endocrine therapy were significantly low. In stage C patients, endocrine therapy should be combined early with other methods such as radiotherapy. In the stage B patients who underwent endocrine therapy, PSA and Gleason score appeared to be associated with the cause-specific survival rate and PSA recurrence-free rate.