Ligand-independent activation of the androgen receptor in prostate cancer by growth factors and cytokines

During the course of prostate cancer progression, cells convert from an and rogen-dependent to an androgen-independent growth status. At this late stag e, the role of the androgens testosterone and dihydrotestosterone and their nuclear receptor, the androgen receptor (AR), is unclear. Has the growth p athway, initiated by the AR, been bypassed in androgen-independent tumours? Mounting evidence suggests the opposite. Prostate cancer cells that have a cquired the ability to survive and grow in a low androgen environment might be activating the AR pathway using growth factors, cytokines, and steroids other than androgens. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.