Tumor-associated angiogenesis in prostate cancer.

All solid tumors require the induction of new blood vessels to grow. To begin to study this phenomenon in prostate cancer, we investigated the intensity of tumor associated angiogenesis in prostate non malignant and malignant tissue. Angiogenesis was measured by quantitating microvessels in a total of 67 patients: 23 non malignant biopsy specimens, and 34 malignant specimens from patients who had undergone prostatectomy. Angiogenic activity in prostatic cancer (prostatectomy) tissue (utilizing Factor VIII staining) was then correlated with pathological staging (Whitmore-Jewitt). Overall there appeared to be a trend of increasing microvessel count (MVC) from benign through the advancing stages of prostate cancer. Based on mean microvessel counts we were able to distinguish stage D from all other pathological stages (p = 0.004 between stages C and D). There was, however, no statistically significant difference between stage B and C. We conclude that tumor associated angiogenesis in prostate cancer may have both clinical and pathological significance in prostate cancer.