Benefits include significant improvement in body composition measurements over six months
FRIDAY, Nov. 22, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Testosterone replacement is associated with an improvement in body composition among younger male cancer survivors with low-normal morning total serum testosterone, according to a study published online Nov. 12 in PLOS Medicine.
Jennifer S. Walsh, M.B.Ch.B., Ph.D., from the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom, and colleagues randomly assigned (1:1) 136 male survivors of testicular cancer, lymphoma, and leukemia (aged 25 to 50 years) to receive either testosterone (Tostran 2 percent gel) or placebo for 26 weeks. Participants all had morning total serum testosterone of 7 to 12 nmol/L and were matched for body mass index.
The researchers found that at the end of the trial, testosterone treatment was associated with decreased trunk fat mass (−0.9 kg; 95 percent confidence interval, −1.6 to −0.3; P = 0.0073), decreased whole-body fat mass (−1.8 kg; 95 percent confidence interval, −2.9 to −0.7; P = 0.0016), and increased lean body mass (1.5 kg; 95 percent confidence interval 0.9 to 2.1; P < 0.001) compared with placebo. The greatest decrease in fat mass was seen in patients with a high truncal fat mass at baseline. No association was seen between treatment effect and physical function or any other quality of life scores.
“The results of this study have significant benefits alongside improvements in body composition, potentially offsetting the risk of increased mortality from heart disease,” a coauthor said in a statement.
Several authors disclosed financial ties to pharmaceutical and diagnostic companies.
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