New Drug Brings Hope to Prostate Cancer Victims

Posted on: Wednesday, 23 July 2008, 18:00 CDT A new drug could provide a step forward in treating the most common cancer among men in England and Wales. Abiraterone has been developed to fight prostate cancer, which kills 9,000 men in England and Wales every year, according to the NHS. The disease is caused when cells in the prostate gland multiply in an uncontrolled way. It often develops slowly which can make it difficult to diagnose. NHS Direct says the slow progress of the disease means it can take up to 15 years to spread to other parts of the body, when it becomes incurable. However, sometimes the cells grow more rapidly and so the cancer spreads aggressively. According to the Prostate Cancer Charity, the illness is most prevalent in men over 50. Afro Carribean men are also more at risk, although it is not clear why. If... [read full story]