Androgen suppression not tied to better COVID-19 outcomes in menA randomized controlled trial found that suppressing androgen hormones in male COVID-19 patients hospitalized with the virus did not improve outcomes.
The study was published yesterday in JAMA Network Open.The data come from the Hormonal Intervention for the Treatment in Veterans With COVID-19 Requiring Hospitalization (HITCH) phase 2 trial, which was conducted at 14 Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals from Jul 22, 2020, to Apr 8, 2021.
A total of 96 men were included in the phase 2 trial, which compared the efficacy of degarelix—a hormone-based chemotherapy used to treat prostate cancer—plus standard care to the effect of placebo plus standard care.Degarelix has a rapid effect on circulating testosterone, reducing the hormone within 48 hours.
Researchers hypothesized that medical castration would limit COVID-19 mortality. Mouse studies suggested medical castration reduced viral severity.However, "There was no statistically significant difference between groups for the primary composite end point.