Volume 13 Issue 4, April 2016

The ability of computers to derive the Gleason score of a tumour directly from the pixel-to-pixel variations that encompass radiological texture has been shown to be accurate. However, the methodology did not mirror the daily clinical task that radiologists face. Further research is required to validate the applicability of this technique.

The positive association between hospital case volume and surgical outcomes is well established in cancer care. Recent reports have increasingly indicated that this relationship also applies to other cancer disciplines, including radiation therapy. Characterizing the extent to which cancer centre experience drives oncological outcomes is critical for patient decision making.

Although the increased use of androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer might be improving survival, a recent large retrospective cohort study that analysed hospital medical record data indicates that long therapy duration is associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Luteinizing-hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonists as androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for men with advanced prostate cancer are usually administered indefinitely on a fixed schedule. However, using testosterone level to guide ADT in these patients could lead to reductions in cost and some symptomatic improvements.

Micturition requires a complex neural control system to coordinate the activities of the urinary bladder, urethra, and urethral sphincters. The specific identity of the mechanical sensor is not known, but considerable interest exists in the contribution of transient receptor potential channels to the mechanosensory functions of the urothelium. These channels could be novel targets for potential therapies that are intended to modulate micturition function.

Active surveillance as a management strategy for favourable-risk prostate cancer has increased in recent years, in an effort to prevent the adverse effects associated with unnecessary overtreatment of low-risk disease. However, long-term data have, in the past, been lacking, making it difficult to assess the effectiveness of this approach. In this Review, Tosoian et al. discuss the current state-of-the-art in active surveillance, reviewing the available evidence and considering future directions in the field.

In this Review, Sopko and Burnett summarize strategies to mitigate adverse penile remodelling and protect erectile function in men undergoing prostatectomy. They discuss innovations for surgery, the use of phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors, intracavernosal injections and vacuum erection devices, as well as possible future treatments. Multidisciplinary approaches are required, but the best therapy scheme has not yet been identified.

Prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) has gained increasing interest as target molecule for imaging. Several small compounds for labelling PSMA have been developed and are currently being investigated as imaging probes for PET. PSMA-based imaging has been reported to improve detection of metastatic disease compared with CT or multiparametric MRI and⁶⁸Ga-PSMA–PET imaging has been shown to increase detection of metastatic sites, therefore, it holds great promise to improve prostate cancer management.