Fortunately, our journal Prostate Cancer and Prostatic Diseases continues to thrive, as witnessed by the recent rise in our impact factor to 1.810, which is the result of more and more of our readers quoting our reviews and original papers in their own work. Of course the impact factor is not the be all and end all parameter of the success of a journal. One could argue that a ‘readability’ factor, that is the journal's ability to interest and engage the reader, is more important, especially in an era when more and more individuals access the journal online rather than through the paper version. The growth of the monthly number of online hits for this journal has been truly phenomenal, and this seems to be a trend that is only likely to increase. We certainly welcome our new ‘cyber readers’ and hope that they, in turn, will submit their very best papers to our journal. We accept around 30% of all submissions, and if a rejection rate of 70% seems harsh, that is the price of maintaining the high standard of content that characterizes this publication, which the current issue, the final one of 2007, aptly illustrates.

Interest in the prostate gland itself, and the diseases it is so susceptible to, continues to grow. In the United Kingdom, the two major charities focusing on the prostate: the Prostate Cancer Charity and the Prostate Research Campaign (recently rebranded as Prostate UK) together raise more than £5 million ($10 million) per annum to raise awareness, improve education and support research into prostate cancer, as well as benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and prostatitis. In the same way that Mike Milken's CapCure in the United States has made an astounding difference, the UK prostate charities are beginning to change attitudes of the public and make men, as well as their partners, more aware of the risks of prostate problems as they grow older. This should result in better outcomes as prostate diseases are found earlier and treatment technologies continue to improve.

If growth is this editorial's theme, then the suppression of prostate cancer growth by hormonal manipulation is one of the important themes of the papers published in this issue. The paper on the effectiveness of androgen deprivation therapy in prolonging survival of older men treated for locoregional prostate cancer by Holmes et al. was widely quoted in the media when it was published in its advanced online form and is certainly worthy of your close attention. Although androgen deprivation can undoubtedly improve survival from prostate cancer, it does so at a cost in terms of side effects. Galvao et al. report that regular exercise can prevent and even reverse the adverse effects of this treatment, a message that should be transmitted to our many patients who are receiving hormone therapy.

Turning then to the growth of new technologies: the excellent review on photoselective vaporization of the prostate (Greenlight PV) highlights how things continue to evolve and develop in terms of minimally invasive BPH therapy. The paper by Gomez Sancha et al. in which the lessons learned from 3500 procedures are described should certainly help those using this technology to improve their outcomes and minimize the patient discomfort that can accompany the treatment of lower urinary tract symptoms due to BPH.

Finally, we wish all our readers and contributors a happy and productive New Year. We really do value and appreciate your support.