The present study made use of the female transsexual model and sought to evaluate the contributions of the ovarian, endometrial, and breast tissues to the androgen up-regulated production of prostate specific antigen (PSA). Serum levels of PSA were significantly raised in female transsexuals before surgery, after long-term androgen therapy (mean +- SE 5 35.3 +- 6.2 pg/mL) when compared with female transsexuals before surgery, but with no androgen therapy (mean +- SE = 1.53 +- 0.25 pg/mL). In addition, in androngenized female transsexuals, after surgery, concentrations of PSA (mean +- SE514.5 +- 2.8 pg/mL) were significantly lowered compared with androngenized female transsexuals after surgery, but the levels were, nevertheless, significantly higher than in normal females. Monthly im injection of 250 mg Sustanon-250 to female transsexuals had raised serum testosterone levels to within the male range. In five subjects, in whom serial measurements were taken, serum testosterone levels were greatly raised 24 h after the testosterone therapy; the mean level (+-SE) was 19.5 +- 2.1 ng/mL. But in spite of these high testosterone levels, serum PSA levels (mean +- SE = 2.2 +- 0.9 pg/mL) were not significantly raised. However, after 12 months of androgen therapy, the mean (+-SE) PSA level in these five subjects was 47 +- 11.6 pg/mL and was significantly higher than the mean level in nonandrogenized female transsexuals. The present study confirmed that high levels of testosterone were able to up-regulate PSA production in women. This up-regulation of PSA production is both a dose - and time - dependent process. Furthermore, the evidence indicates that breast tissues are possibly a nonprostatic source of androgen up-regulated production of PSA women.

(J Clin Endocrinol Metab 84: 3313–3315, 1999)

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