Expected and extraordinary news today on the new treatment front. Medivation and Astellas’ Xtandi (enzalutamide) was approved for use in men with castrate resistant prostate cancer. The new FDA approved label for Xtandi says that it is for the treatment of men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. This label is basically the same as for [...]
I really thought we had gotten over this problem, but an article appearing in a recent report in the Journal of Clinical Oncology indicates that the age old problem that often our doctors fail to supply adequate pain medications to advanced cancer survivors because a fear of drug addiction This attitude still hampers good survivorship [...]
The pharmaceutical company Exelixis has announced that their experimental treatment, cabozantinib has failed the Phase III clinical trial for men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). In the trial the experimental treatment cabozantinib was compared to the drug prednisone. In the trial known as COMET-1, Cabozantinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, did not meet its primary [...]
I recently was informed that I am to honored with the 2014 Harry Pinchot Award from the Prostate Cancer Research Institute. The award recognizes outstanding dedication and support to the prostate cancer community. I am pleased and flattered to be one of this year's receptients.I have been told that one reason I have received this [...]
Advanced prostate cancer and its treatments has significant impacts on a man’s quality of life (QOL) as well as their perception of their health. It is important to better understand these concerns, especially those currently not captured by the currently available health-related quality of life (HRQL) instruments. In the quest to better understand these concerns [...]
Abiraterone acetate (AA) or Zytiga has demonstrated a survival benefit in the pre-chemotherapy setting for men with advanced prostate cancer that has become castrate resistant (mCRPC). As a result it is in widespread clinical use in the United States prior to the use of chemotherapy with docetaxel. Since its FDA approval post chemotherapy there has [...]
Clouded in the murkiness of the debate surrounding the use of the PSA test is an increasing escalation of younger men (under the age of 50 years) being diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer. We know that there has been escalating incidence rate (IR) of prostate cancer PC noted in the last two decades. Many have [...]
It is known that Zoledronic acid (ZA) reduces the risk of developing skeletal-related events (SRE) which are caused by bone metastasis in prostate cancer (PCa). ZA also improves the quality of life (QOL). ZA has become a standard supportive therapy for men with prostate cancer who have bone metastasis. The big unknown is when should [...]
Last April there was some preliminary data from the long-term Phase II STAND study presented at 29th Annual European Association of Urology (EAU) Congress that showed that sipuleucel-T (Provenge) when given after the start of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) seemed to enhance and sustain the immune response in men with a biochemical failure (PSA only) [...]
The vast majority of men with advanced prostate cancer will eventually develop bone metastases. Given this fact it is important to understand what is meant by the term bone metastases. Bones serve as the supporting framework of our bodies. Like the rest of us bones are constructed of cells. These cells compose a network or [...]
