The Arizona Cancer Center at The University of Arizona is studying the effects of Polyphenon E, a green tea extract, on prostate cancer prevention. This study will determine whether Polyphenon E affects cancer-related biomarkers in blood and/or prostate tissue in men with prostate cancer.
Tea is one of the world’s most consumed beverages. Polyphenon E is a chemically defined, decaffeinated, catechin-enriched green tea extract. Catechins are plant chemicals that are considered powerful antioxidants and have multiple beneficial biological effects that could lead to cancer prevention.
Prostate cancer is the most common type of cancer found in American men, other than skin cancer. The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be about 186,320 new cases of prostate cancer in the United States in 2008.
Past and ongoing research in numerous experimental studies and in one clinical trial provide evidence that green tea or green tea extracts such as Polyphenon E may have the potential to lower the risk of prostate cancer in the human population. However, rigorous clinical investigations are needed to determine whether green tea extracts such as Polyphenon E are effective at preventing prostate cancer.
The three-year study at the Arizona Cancer Center will recruit men with a recent diagnosis of organ-confined prostate cancer and scheduled to have the prostate removed within three to six weeks from the start of the study.
Eligible participants will take either four Polyphenon E capsules or a matched placebo each morning with food up to the day of their surgery. They will provide blood samples prior to capsule intake and again right before surgery. In addition, they will complete a diary and calendar of the capsules and other medications taken, illnesses and hospitalizations. All qualified participants will be compensated for their role in this study.
Following their surgery, tissue from their prostates will be analyzed to determine whether any of the tea components can be detected.
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