Patriot Health Digest
Anybody who has ever asked his doctor for testosterone replacement has gotten a warning about TRT possibly leading to prostate cancer and the need for frequent humiliating exams that I would not wish upon my worst enemy.
This warning stems from the work of Clarence Hodges and Charles Brenton Huggins, two researchers who noticed that patients with prostate cancer had longer lives when they were castrated. This led them to assume testosterone was promoting the prostate cancer.
Even more disturbing than this, Huggins and Hodges based their assumption on ONE man with metastatic cancer who had a longer life because he was castrated.
Fortunately, more doctors are realizing the connection between prostate cancer and TRT does not pan out.
Even further, new research – one that was correctly based on a large data set – found that not only does TRT not connect with prostate cancer, it seems it might actually help to prevent it.
The researchers studied men between 40 and 60. They found that the men who got the most testosterone injections were 33% less likely to have prostate cancer than those who got the fewest injections (1 or 2). They also found a similar connection for men who used a testosterone gel.
This study suggests that TRT does not increase your risk of prostate cancer.
In fact, based on these numbers, it seems like it actually helps fight off prostate cancer.
However, it’s important to note that as with many studies, these results could be influenced by other factors. Statistics is a complicated field and this might be another false association where none exists.
Still, these number look comforting for men who are seeking TRT and may have butted into a doctor spouting old nonsense.
