Study Hopes To Fight Prostate Cancer

SAN DIEGO -- Prostate cancer is the second most common type of cancer in American men, after skin cancer. It's estimated there will be more than 198,000 new cases of prostate cancer diagnosed this year and 31,500 men will die from it.

The greatest risk is in men who are over 55, black and have a family member with the disease.

Investigators from more than 400 medical centers in the United States, Puerto Rico and Canada are taking part in the SELECT trial. SELECT stands for Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial.

More than 32,000 men will be enrolled in the study. Study participants will be evaluated by a physician every six months for a period of seven to 12 years. Participants are given either selenium and a placebo, vitamin E and a placebo, both selenium and vitamin E, or two placebos.

The goal of the study is to determine if selenium, vitamin E, or a combination of the two are effective in preventing the development of prostate cancer.

Selenium is a nonmetallic trace element that comes from water and foods such as seafood, meat, and Brazil nuts. It is an antioxidant that is believed to help control cell damage that can lead to cancer.

In 1996, a study was done to determine if selenium could help prevent skin cancer. Researchers found there was no benefit in this regard, but it found a surprising result.

They noticed men taking selenium had 60 percent fewer cases of prostate cancer than men not on the supplement. Study participants on the active selenium receive 200 micrograms per day.

Vitamin E is also found in a variety of foods such as vegetables, vegetable oil, nuts and egg yolks. It, too, is an antioxidant and as such, is thought to prevent cell damage that can lead to cancer.

The idea that vitamin E can prevent prostate cancer came from a 1998 study of 29,000 male smokers in Finland. Researchers set out to determine if vitamin E could prevent lung cancer in this group.

They found that men on the supplement actually seemed to have a higher risk of developing lung cancer, yet they noticed a reduced number developed prostate cancer.

In fact, they said there were 32 percent fewer cases of prostate cancer in the men on vitamin E as compared to those on the placebo. Participants given active vitamin E took 400 milligrams per day.

To participate in the study, you must meet the following criteria:

Be a black man age 50 or older or a man of a different race or ethnicity age 55 or older
Have no history of prostate cancer
Must not have had any other cancer, except non-melanoma skin cancer, in the last five years
Must be in generally good health
You may have benign prostatic hyperplasia

Until study results are known, doctors do not recommend men start taking selenium and vitamin E solely in an effort to lower their risk of prostate cancer.

To participate in the study contact:
National Cancer Institute
Cancer Information Service
(800) 4-CANCER
(800) 422-6237