According to a an article published in the January 2012 issue of Cancer Prevention Research, estrogen may play a role in Melanoma recurrences! The article described a large cohort study of women who were put on an anti-estrogen therapy. The study concluded that those women on the anti-estrogen therapy had a lower risk of melanoma. [...]
It is interesting that Dr. S. Meyers just produced a video on the issue of using the newly approved drug Zytiga (abiraterone acetate) prior to chemotherapy instead of post-chemotherapy. I find it interesting because like him, I have been receiving a number of questions about this same issue. […]
The use of Ketoconazole (Keto) in men with advanced prostate cancer is not considered mainstream, however there is clear evidence that it does reduce PSA in men with castrate resistant prostate cancer. Currently, most men with advanced prostate cancer who do use Keto utilize it prior to chemotherapy. There has been little literature evaluating the [...]
The FDA approval of Zytiga (abiraterone acetate) for men with advanced prostate cancer defines the men who qualify to receive the drug. To qualify you must have advanced prostate cancer and meet all of the three criteria below: 1- Men who are metastatic. 2- Men who failed hormone therapy also known as castrate resistant or [...]
Firmagon, the newly FDA approved gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) receptor blocker should perhaps be considered as a better alternative to the traditionally used ADT drugs like lupron and zoladex (GnRH agonists) which are the current standard of care. Recent data released from the ongoing five-year Firmagon (degarelix) extension study (CS21a) has demonstrated the long term efficacy [...]
There are two different dosage levels used for the administration of Ketoconazole (Keto), a commonly used 2nd line hormone deprivation drug used after the failure of the traditional drugs (Lupron, Zoladex etc.). Low dosage keto involves taking 200 mg three times a day (600 mg per day), while high dose keto uses 400 three times [...]
Recently, I received two separate questions about both low dose ketoconazole (LDK) and high dose ketoconacole (HDK). For both of these men with castrate resistant advanced prostate cancer, their PSA scores continued to rise, despite their using keto. Even when taken properly, not all men experience a positive effect from the drug (a decline in [...]
For those who do not know, I moderate an advanced prostate cancer on-line support group. Members are both men with advanced prostate cancer and many of their care givers. There was a recent conversation I want to share about specific “off label” and “out of the box” treatment strategies, specifically about oncologists not knowing about [...]
GTx, Inc. this weekend presented results of the Capesaris™ (GTx-758) proof of concept pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) clinical trial treating men with advanced prostate cancer, at the Annual Meeting of the Society of Urologic Oncology. Capesaris is a novel oral selective estrogen receptor alpha agonist which GTx is developing for first line treatment of advanced prostate cancer. [...]
What is the primary treatment for men with advanced prostate cancer? We all know the answer, it is hormone therapy. Almost without exception, when we get diagnosed, we are put on to hormone therapy (ADT). ADT makes us feel terribly, it affects our stamina, our memory, our attention span, gives us hot flashes and weakens [...]
