- Email: [email protected]
Preventive medicine and men's health
Urol Clin N Am 31 (2004) xiii–xiv
Preface
Preventive medicine and men’s health
Mark A. Moyad, MD, MPH Guest Editor
Welcome to what I believe is one of the most unique issues of a urology journal for which I have had the pleasure of editing, writing, and just reading. It seems that with each passing year in this discipline the potential merger of preventive medicine and urology itself becomes that much closer to reality. For example, last year brought the results of the first ever large-scale randomized trial for prostate cancer prevention. This was the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT), and it involved over 18,000 men. The authors of this study should be commended, because they ignited a spark that has only continued to gather steam. Other randomized trials are already in progress, such as the SELECT trial of selenium and vitamin E, which will include even more men than the PCPT and will add an enormous amount of data into what may or may not prevent prostate cancer. The fields of preventive medicine and men’s health issues continue to prosper, and current recommendations and thoughts for a variety of urologic issues are and will continue to be needed; thus the idea for this issue of the Urologic Clinics of North America came to fruition. Surprisingly, it involves a number of common and not so common issues that are covered in the medical literature. For example, chemoprevention using the 5-alpha-reductase or COX-2 inhibitors or screening controversies may seem more obvious, but other issues such as preventing side effects of radiation or chemotherapy treatment
are not as obvious. In addition, covering issues of lifestyle, dietary supplement, or other preventive issues for erectile dysfunction, osteoporosis, prostate cancer, or urology in general are also of enormous interest. Several articles on cardiovascular disease remind readers that the more specialized the discipline, the more we share numerous relationships with these other distinct areas of medicine. Therefore, this issue should not merely enhance our knowledge of emerging topics in urology and provide better patient care; hopefully, it will also stimulate researchers to investigate novel projects for the prevention of a variety of future urologic diseases or conditions. Regardless, this unique issue is now complete. Certainly, other issues such as kidney stones, male andropause, and preventing surgical complications could have been addressed, but these issues have already received a large amount of attention in the urology literature. Therefore, to maintain a sense of uniqueness, this compilation of manuscripts represents the so-called ‘‘cutting edge’’ of innovative urology. Researchers from around the world and those involved in a variety of disciplines from urology, pathology, oncology, and preventive and alternative medicine have contributed, and I am enormously grateful not only for their wonderful manuscripts but for their infinite enthusiasm in preparing this issue. Thanks should also go to the editors at Elsevier, because their
0094-0143/04/$ - see front matter Ó 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ucl.2004.03.002
xiv
M.A. Moyad / Urol Clin N Am 31 (2004) xiii–xiv
contributions put the finishing touches on this important issue. Interestingly, it has been over 15 years since I published my first article in urologic prevention or male health issues, and I cannot remember a time where there was more interest and palpable energy for such a series of articles. Indeed, the field of preventive or alternative medicine and urology is no longer mutually exclusive, as was the case when I started my career. The advances that should take place in general medicine over the next few years and their impact in urology, or vice versa, will not only be astounding in my opinion, but should impact all-cause morbidity and mortality in many of our patients. Rather than simply shifting the burden of disease to
another field of medicine, this will represent a true advance in the field of general medicine. Indeed, these are exciting times for researchers, clinicians, and patients, and this issue will hopefully serve as a symbolic and tangible representation of just how bright the future appears to be when dealing with the issue of preventive medicine and men’s health in urology. Mark A. Moyad, MD, MPH Department of Urology University of Michigan Medical Center 1500 East Medical Center Drive Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0330 E-mail address: [email protected]
Preface
Preventive medicine and men’s health
Mark A. Moyad, MD, MPH Guest Editor
Welcome to what I believe is one of the most unique issues of a urology journal for which I have had the pleasure of editing, writing, and just reading. It seems that with each passing year in this discipline the potential merger of preventive medicine and urology itself becomes that much closer to reality. For example, last year brought the results of the first ever large-scale randomized trial for prostate cancer prevention. This was the Prostate Cancer Prevention Trial (PCPT), and it involved over 18,000 men. The authors of this study should be commended, because they ignited a spark that has only continued to gather steam. Other randomized trials are already in progress, such as the SELECT trial of selenium and vitamin E, which will include even more men than the PCPT and will add an enormous amount of data into what may or may not prevent prostate cancer. The fields of preventive medicine and men’s health issues continue to prosper, and current recommendations and thoughts for a variety of urologic issues are and will continue to be needed; thus the idea for this issue of the Urologic Clinics of North America came to fruition. Surprisingly, it involves a number of common and not so common issues that are covered in the medical literature. For example, chemoprevention using the 5-alpha-reductase or COX-2 inhibitors or screening controversies may seem more obvious, but other issues such as preventing side effects of radiation or chemotherapy treatment
are not as obvious. In addition, covering issues of lifestyle, dietary supplement, or other preventive issues for erectile dysfunction, osteoporosis, prostate cancer, or urology in general are also of enormous interest. Several articles on cardiovascular disease remind readers that the more specialized the discipline, the more we share numerous relationships with these other distinct areas of medicine. Therefore, this issue should not merely enhance our knowledge of emerging topics in urology and provide better patient care; hopefully, it will also stimulate researchers to investigate novel projects for the prevention of a variety of future urologic diseases or conditions. Regardless, this unique issue is now complete. Certainly, other issues such as kidney stones, male andropause, and preventing surgical complications could have been addressed, but these issues have already received a large amount of attention in the urology literature. Therefore, to maintain a sense of uniqueness, this compilation of manuscripts represents the so-called ‘‘cutting edge’’ of innovative urology. Researchers from around the world and those involved in a variety of disciplines from urology, pathology, oncology, and preventive and alternative medicine have contributed, and I am enormously grateful not only for their wonderful manuscripts but for their infinite enthusiasm in preparing this issue. Thanks should also go to the editors at Elsevier, because their
0094-0143/04/$ - see front matter Ó 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.ucl.2004.03.002
xiv
M.A. Moyad / Urol Clin N Am 31 (2004) xiii–xiv
contributions put the finishing touches on this important issue. Interestingly, it has been over 15 years since I published my first article in urologic prevention or male health issues, and I cannot remember a time where there was more interest and palpable energy for such a series of articles. Indeed, the field of preventive or alternative medicine and urology is no longer mutually exclusive, as was the case when I started my career. The advances that should take place in general medicine over the next few years and their impact in urology, or vice versa, will not only be astounding in my opinion, but should impact all-cause morbidity and mortality in many of our patients. Rather than simply shifting the burden of disease to
another field of medicine, this will represent a true advance in the field of general medicine. Indeed, these are exciting times for researchers, clinicians, and patients, and this issue will hopefully serve as a symbolic and tangible representation of just how bright the future appears to be when dealing with the issue of preventive medicine and men’s health in urology. Mark A. Moyad, MD, MPH Department of Urology University of Michigan Medical Center 1500 East Medical Center Drive Ann Arbor, MI 48109-0330 E-mail address: [email protected]