Thyroid hormone and androgen signals mutually interplay and enhance inflammation and tumorigenic activation of tumor microenvironment in prostate cancer

Abstract

Prostate Cancer (PCa) is the most commonly diagnosed non-cutaneous cancer in males and the fifth leading cause of death worldwide. The majority of PCas are androgen-sensitive, with a significant up-regulation of Androgen Receptor (AR) that causes a stimulatory effect on growth and progression of cancer cells. For this reason, the first-line therapy for PCa is androgen ablation, even if it ultimately fails due to the onset of hormone-refractory state, in which the malignant cells do not sense the androgen signal anymore. Besides androgens, a growing number of evidence suggests that Thyroid Hormones (THs) mediate tumor-promoting effects in a variety of human cancers, as Epithelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition (EMT), invasion and metastasis and also stimulation of angiogenesis and tumor metabolism. Moreover, epidemiological studies demonstrated an increased risk for PCa in patients with lower levels of Thyreotropin (TSH). Here, we investigated if intracellular TH metabolism affects Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) and PCa formation and progression. We found that the intracellular TH metabolism is a crucial determinant of PCa behavior. We observed that a dynamic stage-specific expression of the THs modulating enzymes, the deiodinases, is required for the progression of BPH to PCa malignancy. By acting simultaneously on epithelial cancer cells and fibroblasts, THs exert a proliferative and pro-inflammatory effect cooperating with androgens. These findings suggest that androgens and THs may interplay and mediate a coordinate effect on human PCa formation and progression. In light of our results, future perspective could be to explore the potential benefits of THs intracellular modulators aimed to counteract PCa progression.

Keywords: Deiodinases; Prostate cancer; Thyroid hormones.