Harvard Health Content API

A new study of men with early prostate cancer found no difference in death rates whether they received surgery or no treatment. The study adds to recent evidence that prostate cancer may be overtreated in the United States. The study included 731 men with early prostate cancer. Their average age was 67. They were randomly assigned to have immediate surgery or no treatment. People in each group lived an average of about 13 years after the study began. Nearly 6% of men in the surgery group and just over 8% in the no-treatment group died of prostate cancer. That difference was small enough that it could have been caused by chance. But there was some evidence of benefit for men with a score of 10 or higher on the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test. Prostate cancer deaths were 33% lower for men with these higher scores who had surgery rather than no treatment.

The herbal treatment milk thistle does not help people with hepatitis C infection, a new study finds. The study included 154 people with hepatitis C who had not responded well to standard treatments. They were randomly divided into 3 groups. Two of the groups took milk thistle extract, in 2 different doses. The other group took placebo (fake) pills. After 6 months, 2 people in each group showed signs of improvement. Those taking milk thistle did no better than those taking the placebo. The Journal of the American Medical Association published the study. HealthDay News wrote about it July 17.