Seeking Ways to Predict, Prevent and Better Treat Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is the most prevalent form of cancer and the second-leading cause of cancer death in American men today. Mayo Clinic physicians are experienced in every state and manifestation of the disease and have a high success rate in its treatment, seeing more men who have prostate cancer than any other medical center in the world. The sheer size of the clinical program gives the Mayo Clinic Cancer Center an advantage in research.

With so many patients, Mayo has accumulated an enormous database of prostate cancer information with an extensive store of clinical data, tissue, and serum samples. In the Mayo tradition, researchers in the lab work hand-in-hand with physicians who treat the patients. They collaborate across Mayo programs and medical specialties, and between Mayo's three campuses in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota to foster new discoveries in the field.

Mayo Clinic Cancer Center’s expertise is recognized in part through the amount of extramural funding it receives. For example, the Cancer Center is one of ten National Cancer Institute-designated cancer centers to receive a highly-competitive Specialized Program of Research Excellence (SPORE) grant for prostate cancer research. SPORE researchers work together (inter- and intra-institutionally) to efficiently speed the development of new methods of cancer prevention, detection and treatment through translational research. This relationship provides Mayo patients with cutting-edge prostate cancer therapies not available to other centers. Prostate SPORE research at Mayo focuses on the genetic susceptibility to prostate cancer which could help identify men at increased risk of developing the disease and on new prevention strategies.

Through SPORE research projects and other initiatives, there are dozens of clinical trials specific to prostate cancer open at Mayo Clinic. These trials incorporate clinical research questions pertinent to all oncologic disciplines, including urology, surgery, radiation and medical oncology with numerous areas of novel therapies.