| Chondroitin Sulfate Charles E. Myers, Jr., MD Tablets or capsules containing chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine have been marketed as a treatment for osteoarthritis. The surface of joints, like the knee, is lined with cartilage and the joint space is filled with synovial fluid. In osteoarthritis, the cartilage lining the joint surface is damaged or destroyed. Chondroitin sulfate and glucosamine are key components of cartilage. It is believed that these compounds as supplements might enhance the ability of the body to repair the joint surface. Based on the men I see in our second opinion clinic, the use of this combination is commonly used as a treatment for osteoarthritis in men with prostate cancer. It is my clinical impression that these capsules do lessen the symptoms of osteoarthritis. Chondroitin sulfate is a member of a larger group of chemicals, called proteoglycans, which are known to play a role in cancer biology. Recently several papers have reported a link between chondroitin sulfate and the spread of prostate cancer. The first study examined the proteoglycans present in normal prostate tissue compared with benign prostate hypertrophy and cancer. Of all of the proteoglycans, chondroitin sulfate was most commonly increased in prostate cancer compared with normal tissues................. Full text at http://www.prostateforum.com/info-chondroitin.htm S. Iida, et al. "Analysis of glycosaminoglycans in human prostate by high-performance liquid chromatography" British Journal of Urology 79(5): 763-769, 1997. C. Ricciardelli, et al. "Elevated levels of peritumoral chondroitin sulfate are predictive of poor prognosis in patients treated by radical prostatectomy for early-stage prostate cancer" Cancer Research 59(10): 2324-2328, 1999. C. Ricciardelli et al. "Elevated levels of versican but not decorin predict disease progression in early-stage prostate cancer" Clinical Cancer Research 4(4): 963-971, 1998. Y. Zhang, et al. "Promotion of chondrocyte proliferation by versican mediated by G1 domain and EGF-like motifs" Journal of Cellular Biochemistry 73(4): 445-457, 1999. Z. Isogai, et al. "2B1 antigen characteristically expressed on extracellular matrices of human malignant tumors is a large chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan, PG-M/versican" Cancer Research 56(17): 3902-3908, 1996. The following is reprinted from The Prostate Forum Volume 4 Number 8 August 1999, p.7, written and published February, 2000. |
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