Prostate Cancer: Bone Decay Linked to Popular Treatment

(CBS) Men being treated for prostate cancer may have something else to worry about:

Brittle bones.

Preliminary research from Australia now links a common prostate cancer treatment called androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) to changes in bone structure that could increase the risk for fractures.

An estimated 600,000 prostate cancer patients in the U.S. are being treated with ADT, according to a statement released by The Endocrine Society. ADT works by suppressing the male hormones that fuel the growth of prostate cancer.

If the study holds any good news, it's that the "virtual bone biopsies" used to conduct the research might help doctors identify men at risk for fractures, according to scientists who conducted the study.

"This technology may be a useful test in predicting fractures in patients, but further research is needed in identifying individuals at greatest fracture risk as well as optimal therapeutic strategies," lead authors Emma Hamilton, MBBS and Dr. Mathis Grossmann, of the University of Melbourne, said in the statement.

In the study, 26 prostate cancer patients undergoing ADT were followed for 12 months. The scientists used blood tests and sophisticated X-rays known as computed tomography (CT) scans  to assess changes in bone structure. They found  structural decay of the hard outer shell and spongy inner mesh of bones.

They didn't study outcomes so they cannot yet say that ADT leads to more breaks.

The study is slated for publication in the December issue of the society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.