According to a study published in the Feb. 20 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology adults with cancer can experience improvements in their emotional distress levels and in their quality of life through the use of psycho-oncologic interventions, such as relaxation, individual and group psychotherapy, and psychoeducation. Hermann Faller, M.D., Ph.D., of the University [...]
Some more good news for the advanced prostate cancer community was announced today. Bayer HealthCare announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted priority review to their New Drug Application (NDA) filed in December 2012 for the investigational oncology compound radium-223 dichloride (radium-223). The application is under review for the treatment of [...]
We all use the Internet to learn about our prostate cancer, your reading this post confirms this statement. The Internet can be a useful tool for finding information and connecting with other patients and caregivers. However, it can also be a nightmare of unreliable misinformation. Understanding what is credible, accurate and reliable information about prostate [...]
I recently read a very interesting post by Trisha Torrey on About.com about a happening on the TV show, Downton Abbey. Downton Abbey is a PBS (in the United States) TV show that originates from the UK. Briefly, the show is about the British aristocracy and their help, not dissimilar to the other famous show [...]
I have said many times that one of the more important issues facing our use of Provenge is when to start it and how to sequence this treatment with the other newly approved agents that have recently become available for men with advanced prostate cancer. There is occasional conversation that Provenge is already antiquated due [...]
Mortality prospects after a prostate cancer recurrences following a radical prostatectomy has always been assumed to be directly related to the early development of metastases. A study from Melbourne Australia indicates that men with low-risk prostate cancer have good mortality prospects even when they experience early biochemical recurrence. The first author of the study, Anthony [...]
There has been much discussion about the timing of treatments now that we have new drugs available to treat advanced prostate cancer. However, today’s technology does not allow us to know what the best sequencing of these drugs to maximize their efficacy would be, so we just punt along. We do not know whether or [...]
It is unfortunate, but some of us will approach a time when we know that the advanced prostate cancer we have been battling has gotten the better of us and will end our life in the near future. If we are admitted into the hospital we will be asked to sign a lot of papers [...]
Some mornings we just wake up to great news and today is one of those mornings. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has just announced that they have approved Zytiga (abiraterone acetate) for use prior to chemotherapy. - This FDA announcement is an expansion of their prior approved (April 2011) for the use of Zytiga [...]
We all know that LHRH agonists are used for androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) cause a tremendous number of side effects, but it is not uncommon for our doctors to never discuss these potential side effects with us prior to starting therapy. Additionally, doctors neglect to offer alternative therapies that might accomplish the same results (like [...]
