<i>PROPIONIBACTERIUM ACNES</i> ASSOCIATED WITH INFLAMMATION IN RADICAL PROSTATECTOMY SPECIMENS: A POSSIBLE LINK TO CANCER EVOLUTION?

Abstract

P. acnes has been isolated from prostatic tissues in men who underwent radical prostatectomy for localized cancer and has been shown to be positively associated with prostatic inflammation. This inflammation may then be linked to the evolution of carcinoma. Furthermore, organisms infecting these patients with prostate cancer differ genetically and phenotypically from the commonly identified cutaneous P. acnes isolates, suggesting that specific subtypes may be involved in development of prostatic inflammation.