C-peptide, testosterone, estrogen, cortisol and zinc in patients with benign hyperplasia of the prostate.

Patients with benign hyperplasia of the prostate (BHP) were studied in relation to aberrant serum c-peptide, testosterone, estrone, cortisol and morning fasting glucose, to analyze the syntropy of diabetes and BHP. The results were compared to patients with bladder cancer without BHP and, after correction of the patients' weights and ages, the control failed to prove any significance. This is consistent with the incidence rate of maturity onset diabetes in prostate adenomas (n = 527, 7.3%) and of a control group (8.5%) of patients, 60--70 years of age. Zinc, another parameter associated with insulin function, is frequently observed to change in BHP and is significantly increased in prostatic tissue which possibly acts as a zinc pool. In this study, however, no effect of prostatectomy on serum zinc was demonstrable even in a long-term control of 9 months, suggesting a sensitive and rapid regulation of this metal independent from the prostate.