Ortho Biotech & Development, a unit of Cougar Biotechnology, Inc. has unblinded their Phase 3 study of abiraterone acetate plus prednisone. In the trial the abiraterone was used for the treatment of men with metastatic advanced prostate cancer has progressed following treatment with one or two chemotherapy regimens at least one of which contained docetaxel. [...]
The taxotere burn is not the hottest, latest dance sweeping the country, it is a little discussed complication that can strike a man while having chemotherapy for the treatment of prostate cancer. If the infusion equipment is not secured tightly or the vein not properly accessed and any of the taxotere is allowed to leak [...]
The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the U.S. agency in charge of Medicare, announced yesterday that it has scheduled a meeting to discuss the coverage of Dendreon’s prostate cancer vaccine Provenge. The meeting has been scheduled for this November 17. […]
Pamidronate and zoledronic acid (bisphosphonates) are a mainstay in the treatment of men with advanced prostate cancer as well as for breast cancer survivors for the prevention of skeletal-related events (SREs). There have been many clinical trials comparing the efficacy and side effect profiles between pamidronate and zoledronic acid among men with advanced prostate cancer. [...]
Besides the blood problems and the gastric problems I discussed in the last two posts, taxotere can also cause hair loss and have effects on your skin and nails. The q3wk dose of taxotere (higher dose once every 3 weeks) is associated with reversible hair loss in two-thirds of men going on that schedule and [...]
Taxotere can cause severe irritation of the liver, so your liver functions must be monitored via regular blood tests. If the blood screens show you are developing liver problems a modification of your dosing or possibly stopping further infusions is warranted. Liver damage caused by taxotere is usually reversible when the drug is stopped, however [...]
One of the major problems faced by men on taxotere (chemotherapy) is anemia. Anemia is characterized as a low red blood cell count. It is often the cause of significant fatigue, another major complaint from men on chemotherapy. Aranesp® and Procrit® are both synthetic versions of the naturally occurring hormone, erythropoietin, that stimulates red blood [...]
Is there any reason to continue hormone therapy (ADT) while I have become castrate resistant and I’m starting chemotherapy? This is a common question that is asked by many of us. The real underlying question we are asking is: I feel so terrible now and I am getting ready to add chemotherapy with all of [...]
There have been a number of studies that have suggested that some common medications will alter prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels. Researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA., investigated the impact of individual and combinations of common medications thought to impact PSA in a large cross-sectional study of the United States population. [...]
One of the more common experiences many of us have when fighting advanced prostate cancer is fatigue. Despite how common fatigue is in men with advanced disease there has not been even one published controlled trial of interventions for fatigue! A research team at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, [...]
