Positive Health Online

Men over the age of 45 are surprised to learn that oestrogen, a 'female' hormone, is also present in their bodies. Male oestrogen is produced in very small quantities, as a by-product of the testosterone conversion process. This process is regulated by an enzyme called aromatase.

Balance vs. Imbalance

Balanced levels of oestrogen encourage a healthy libido, improve brain function, protect the heart and strengthen the bones. Oestradiol is the most potent oestrogen of a group of steroids which includes oestrone and oestriol. Excessive oestradiol levels can lead to the suppression and reduced activity of testosterone. Typically, men's oestrogen levels increase with age, and it is not uncommon for a 59 year-old man to have more oestrogen than a 54 year-old woman.

Obesity, pesticides, nutritional deficiencies, prescription medicines and excessive alcohol intake can all raise a man's oestrogen levels. When this happens, men frequently lose muscle tone and gain body fat. The end results of high oestrogen for men can include obesity, an enlarged prostate, diabetes and a higher incidence of heart disease and cancer.

Prevention of Prostate Cancer

"…studies have shown a strong correlation between consumption of cruciferous vegetables and a lower risk of prostate cancer. These vegetables contain glucosinolates, which during metabolism give rise to several breakdown products, mainly Indole-3-Carbinol (I3C)…"[1]

Natural Prostate Treatment

"It is time to revamp the prostate cancer hypothesis. Orchiectomy [removal of the testicles] provided a prostate cancer benefit not because it removed testicular testosterone but because it lowered oestradiol levels.

"The two most important factors in the underlying metabolic imbalance prostate (and all hormone-dependent cancers) are oestrogen dominance and nutritional imbalance. Prevent these two factors and you will prevent the cancer. If the cancer is already underway, correcting the oestrogen dominance will slow the cancer growth and prolong life.[2]

Case Studies

1. "In the current study, we investigated whether I3C had any effect against prostate cancer cells and, if so, attempts were made to identify the potential molecular mechanism(s) by which I3C elicits its biological effects on prostate cancer cells. Here we report for the first time that I3C inhibits the growth of PC-3 prostate cancer cells.

Induction of apoptosis was also observed in this cell line when treated with I3C, as measured by DNA laddering and poly (ADP-ribose) polymersae (PARP) cleavage.

From these results, we conclude that I3C inhibits the growth of PC-3 prostate cancer cells by inducing G1 cell cycle arrest leading to apoptosis, and regulates the expression of apoptosis-related genes. These findings suggest that I3C may be an effective chemopreventive or therapeutic agent against prostate cancer."[3]

2. "We have previously shown that 3,3'-diindolylmethane (DIM – a metabolite of I3C) has a suppressive effect on the growth of human breast and PC cell lines. The objective of this study was examination of the potential therapeutic effects of DIM in an in vivo model. METHODS: TRAMP-C2, a mouse PC cell line, was injected into the flank of male C57BL/6 mice. When tumors appeared, mice were injected intraperitoneally with either corn oil (vehicle) or DIM (2.5, 5, or 10 mg per kg body weight) three times a week, for three weeks, and tumor volumes were measured bi-weekly with calibermeters. Later, the tumors were removed, their final weights and volumes were measured, and tumor sections were tested for histological studies. RESULTS: DIM had a significant inhibitory effect, caused by diminished tumor growth.

CONCLUSIONS: The inhibitory action of DIM on tumor growth was demonstrated in vivo. Hence, this compound at the concentrations tested may offer an effective and non toxic therapeutic means against tumour growth in rodents, and may serve as a potential natural anti-carcinogenic compound in humans.[4]

PSA Levels Not A Good Indicator of Cancer

"PSA level was also found to be not an especially good indicator of prostate cancer. If only PSA levels were used, 82 (17.3%) of the 473 cancers found by TRUS would have remained undetected. Moreover, among men with cancer and a PSA level of less than four ng/ml (usually considered a safe level), 42% of the cancers were termed minimal, 42% termed moderate, and 16% were advanced."[5]

Feminizing The Male Patient

"Orchiectomy: This is surgical removal of the testicles, removing the source of male hormones. Prostate cancers typically shrink after removal of the testes. However, over time, the cancer inevitably returns. Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonists: These medications reduce the amount of testosterone the testicles make. These injectable drugs can decrease the amount of testosterone produced by a man's testicles. The two available in the United States are leuprolide and goserelin. Antiandrogens: Orchiectomy and LHRH agonists do not fully block the production of androgens. Antiandrogens block the effects of those residual androgens, and are often used in combination with Orchiectomy and LHRH agonists in a process called total androgen blockade. The antiandrogens available in the United States are flutamide, nilutamide, and bicalutamide. Female hormones: Di-ethyl stilbesterol (DES) is a synthetic oestrogen often used in prostate cancer."6

Serum vs. Saliva Testing

"For reasons that escape rational thinking, conventional medicine persists in using serum tests rather than saliva tests. The results have been disastrous. When using hormone creams or gels, the hormone is absorbed through the skin and into the blood without first passing through the liver. Thus, they are essentially all absorbed in the 'free' form. When given orally, they pass first through the liver and 90% of them become protein-bound. For this reason, transdermal dosing is at least ten times more efficient than oral dosing.

"If one uses serum testing to measure the blood levels achieved by transdermal dosing, the test will fail to measure all the hormone carried by red blood cells. As a consequence, physicians are apt to greatly overdose their patients.

"When using saliva testing, it is found that the transdermal dose of testosterone when treating someone with testosterone deficiency is only 0.25-0.5 mg in women, and one to two mg in men. As the New Yorker article indicated, the transdermal doses of testosterone ranged from five mg to 100 mg a day. The same is observed in oestrogen replacement therapy – the doses are generally all greatly excessive. The same hormone that brought good health without side effects when in normal endogenous levels will bring on very bad side effects when given in grossly excessive doses. The problem is not the hormone, per se, the problem is the dosing."7

Conclusion

Feminize the Male Patient or Natural Oestradiol Reduction?

Prior to enhancement with female hormones, surgery, or radiation, reduction of confirmed elevated oestradiol levels, via saliva testing, appears to be the more logical choice from prostate cancer treatment options. Indole-3-Carbinol has shown to be a safe, effective and inexpensive non-prescriptive course of action.

References

1. Induction of apoptosis in human prostate cancer cell line, PC3, by 3,3'-diindolylmethane through the mitochondrial pathway. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=
2. Lee J. MD. Hormone Balance for Men: What your doctor may not tell you about prostate health and natural hormone supplementation. http://www.johnleemd.net
3. Indole-3-carbinol (I3C) induced cell growth inhibition, G1 cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in prostate cancer cells. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=
4. Therapeutic activity of 3,3'-diindolylmethane on prostate cancer in an in vivo model. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=
5. http://www.johnleemd.com/store/prostate_cancer.html
6. What are the current treatment options for prostrate cancer?
http://www.infoaging.org/d-prost-5-treatment.html
7. http://www.johnleemd.com/store/male_hormone.html