Prostate-Specific Antigen Levels During Testosterone Treatment Of Hypogonadal Older Men: Data From A Controlled Trial

Context: Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) changes during testosterone treatment of older hypogonadal men have not been rigorously evaluated.Design: Double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial.Setting: Twelve US academic medical centers.Participants: Seven hundred ninety hypogonadal men >= 65 years of age with average testosterone levels <= 275 ng/dL. Men at high risk for prostate cancer were excluded.Interventions: Testosterone or placebo gel for 12 months.Main Outcomes: Percentile changes in PSA during testosterone treatment of 12 months.Results: Testosterone treatment that increased testosterone levels from 232 +/- 63 ng/dL to midnormal was associated with a small but substantially greater increase (P < 0.001) in PSA levels than placebo treatment. Serum PSA levels increased from 1.14 +/- 0.86 ng/mL (mean +/- SD) at baseline by 0.47 +/- 1.1 ng/mL at 12 months in the testosterone group and from 1.25 +/- 0.86 ng/mL by 0.06 +/- 0.72 ng/mL in the placebo group. Five percent of men treated with testosterone had an increase >= 1.7 ng/mL and 2.5% of men had an increase of >= 3.4 ng/mL. A confirmed absolute PSA >4.0 ng/mL at 12 months was observed in 1.9% ofmen in the testosterone group and 0.3% in the placebo group. Four men were diagnosed with prostate cancer; two were Gleason 8.Conclusions: When hypogonadal oldermen with normal baseline PSA are treated with testosterone, 5% had an increase in PSA >= 1.7 ng/mL, and 2.5% had an increase >= 3.4 ng/mL.