New approach for relapsed prostate
cancer
ANAHEIM, Calif.
June 6, 2001 (Cancer Digest) -- Giving men a well-known chemotherapy
agent before starting hormone therapy for prostate cancer that
has recurred may be more effective than the hormone therapy alone,
new research suggests.
The study, presented
at the American Urological Association's meeting in Anaheim,
Calif. yesterday uses docetaxel, a chemotherapy agent often used
to treat lung or breast cancer, but is currently not used to
treat prostate cancer.
The research team led
by Dr. Arif Hussain of the University of Maryland Greenebaum
Cancer Center said in a press release that the preliminary results
are very promising for men whose prostate cancer has recurred
after surgery or radiation therapy.
"All of the patients
treated with chemotherapy went on to respond to the hormone therapy,"
says Hussain, who is also an associate professor of medicine
and biochemistry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.
"We believe that such a combination could possibly be more
effective in controlling recurrent prostate cancer."
"Unfortunately,
most advanced prostate cancers develop resistance to traditional
therapies over time. By using chemotherapy first in patients
with early, recurrent disease, we may be able to more effectively
kill prostate cancer cells before they develop resistance, and
that is the rationale behind this new approach," Hussain
says.
The ongoing, early-phase
study has evaluated 26 patients so far. Researchers found a 57
percent decline in levels of prostate-specific antigen, known
as PSA, among the patients who completed chemotherapy before
starting hormonal therapy. An increase in PSA levels often indicates
that the prostate cancer is coming back.
"Overall, the
regimen has been well tolerated," says Hussain. "The
preliminary results of this trial suggest that docetaxel followed
by hormone therapy could represent a new treatment approach in
men whose prostate cancer has recurred after surgery or radiation
therapy, as evidenced by a rising PSA level."
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