Related Experiment Videos
Hypocalcemia in patients with prostate cancer
S C Kukreja1, A Shanmugam, T E Lad
1Department of Medicine, VA West Side Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois 60680.
Calcified Tissue International
|December 1, 1988
Summary
Apparent hypocalcemia is common in prostate cancer patients, especially with bone metastases. True hypocalcemia, confirmed by ionized calcium, is rare in these patients.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Endocrinology
- Nephrology
Background:
- Prostate cancer frequently metastasizes to bone, potentially affecting calcium homeostasis.
- Hypocalcemia, or low calcium levels, can be influenced by various factors including protein binding and kidney function.
Observation:
- A case of severe hypocalcemia was observed in a prostate cancer patient with extensive bone metastases, attributed to calcium deposition in bone.
- In a study of 112 prostate cancer patients, 15 (13.4%) showed hypocalcemia based on total serum calcium.
- Of those with hypocalcemia, 14 had bone metastases, and serum calcium, protein, and albumin were lower in patients with bone metastases.
Findings:
- Apparent hypocalcemia (based on total calcium) is prevalent in prostate cancer patients, particularly those with bone metastases (23%).
- True hypocalcemia (based on ionized calcium) is uncommon, with only one patient out of 47 studied exhibiting this.
- Hypoalbuminemia and renal failure may contribute to the observed low total serum calcium levels in this cohort.
Implications:
- Routine total serum calcium measurements may overestimate hypocalcemia in prostate cancer patients with bone disease.
- Ionized calcium measurements are crucial for accurately diagnosing true hypocalcemia in this population.
- Understanding calcium dysregulation is important for managing prostate cancer patients with skeletal involvement.