Prevention of Prostate Cancer by Inositol Hexaphosphate

Prostate cancer PCa is the most common invasive malignancy and second leading cause of cancer death in men in the United States. Up till now, hormone ablation therapy is the major way to treat PCa. Such therapy only causes a temporary regression and tumor growth resumes within 6-18 months. Therefore, better androgen blockade is not the answer for treating PCa. Rather, research efforts should focus on the therapeutic agents that will inhibit growth factor signaling pathways and thereby inhibit growth. A large number of studies have pointed out that inositol hexaphosphate IP6 could have beneficial effect on variety of cancers. The specific aims of this proposal are to determine 1 the in vivo effects of IP6 on the growth of PCa 2 the efficacy of IP6 in inhibiting growth factor-induced DNA synthesis of the PCa cells in vitro, and 3 the molecular mechanisms by which IP6 inhibits growth of PCa cells. The information we obtain from these experiments will provide a better understanding of the potential role of IP6 in the prevention of growth of PCa cells. This information will lead to more effective PCa prevention and treatment strategies in human that might prolong the longevity of men with prostate cancer.