| Sleep
loss is common in modern societies and an undesirable side effect of
the drugs most commonly used for androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in
the treatment of advanced prostate cancer. The female hormone estrogen is known to play a role in regulating the quality of sleep and the ability to recover sleep after sleep deprivation in females. However, little is known about how this hormone influences sleep behaviour and sleep quality in men. To examine whether estrogen has similar effects on sleep in males, we will examine sleep-wake behaviour in male rodents that are castrated and then treated with low or high dose of estrogen. This research should help us understand the role that gonadal hormones play in sleep regulation for both males and females. Estrogenic compounds have historically been used to treat advanced prostate cancer. In recent decades, however, they have been replaced with much more expensive drugs that have a growing list of negative side effects. If our study shows that estrogen can improve sleep quality in androgen-deprived males, it will help support the idea of offering PCa patients parenteral estrogen as an alternative to the more expensive and potentially dangerous drugs now used to suppress testosterone. Such a shift in drug treatment could save North American public health care programs over $1 billion dollars per year. |