Professor Hubert Hondermarck's prostate cancer research examines drug in preclinical trial to block sympathetic nerves

The research involves a preclinical trial of a drug normally used for cardiovascular disease and anxiety.

"We believe it may be a way to prevent and treat bone metastases," said Professor Hubert Hondermarck, of Hunter Medical Research Institute and University of Newcastle.

Professor Hondermarck, who is leading the team, said there are two types of prostate cancer.

The dangerous form can spread to the bones within a couple of years.

"Often it's killing the patients," he said.

"But the vast majority of prostate cancers are not killing the patients. Patients will die of something else.

"The problem we have at this stage is we don't know how to identify with certainty which one is aggressive and which one is not at the time of diagnosis."

However, Professor Hondermarck's lab discovered that "we can predict which cancer is dangerous and which is not at the time of diagnosis". This is based on the "infiltration of nerves into the tumour".

"If you have nerves inside the tumour, then two years later that tumour will turn into bone metastases," he said.

"If there are no nerves, nothing happens."

Stephen Porter, who has prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, says medical research is crucial for people like him to keep an optimistic outlook.

The 62-year-old, of Boat Harbour in Port Stephens, hopes for a treatment that will keep him alive.

Asked how he felt about research in Newcastle that aims to treat his condition, he said "it's exciting".

"You certainly want to hear that there could be a cure for what you've got," he said.

The $600,000 research project at Professor Hondermarck's lab will occur over three years, with funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council.

"Predicting is good, but treating is even better. That's the purpose of the project," he said.

"We will target nerves in the tumour to prevent or treat the bone metastases."

The drugs being used in the trial - beta blockers - are currently used for conditions such as hypertension.

Some patients also receive the drugs to treat anxiety.

"They block the activity of sympathetic nerves. They decrease your level of anxiety and the blood pressure.

"It's not a drug used against cancer now, but we believe it may be a way to prevent and treat bone metastases. The important thing is, this is pre-clinical research. This is not something patients should try."

But in three years, the research effort will have determined whether it works on prostate cancer.

Professor Hondermarck said prostate cancer is "very common and probably more common than we think".

After the age of 50, most men start to have an enlarged prostate.

"We can say from autopsies that the bodies of males who died of something else are often found with prostate cancer or pre-cancer.

"Often people don't even know about it, which is not good by the way.

"That's why it's recommended to do the PSA test. This is something that all men after 50 to 55 should do on a regular basis to make sure their prostates are OK."

The present difficulty of the medical sector to differentiate between dangerous and less dangerous prostate tumours means some patients undergo unnecessary treatments.

"Most people with prostate cancer will get the treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy or hormone therapy. It depends on the situation," he said.

These treatments have potential side effects such as incontinence, impotence, bowel trouble and toxicity.

"It would be better to avoid those aggressive treatments if the tumour is not aggressive," he said.

Professor Hondermarck's research uses precision medicine to target the nervous system's role in cancer.

"It's an emerging area in research called cancer neuroscience. Our laboratory is contributing to this. It means looking at the role of the nerves and nervous system in the initiation and progression of cancer. This is something which has been underestimated up until now."

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