Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer patients who showed central abdominal uptake (CAU) on imaging with capromab pendetide (ProstaScint) had prostate-cancer-specific death rates 10 times higher than those without CAU

Prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) emerged as the world's first clinically useful tumor marker in the 1940s and 1950s. With the introduction of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test in the 1980s, which performed significantly better than PAP in terms of screening and monitoring response to treatment, PAP fell into disfavor. An increasing number of recent studies have identified PAP as a significant prognostic factor for patients with intermediate- and high-risk prostate cancer. PAP appears to be particularly valuable in predicting distant failure in higher-risk patients for whom high levels of local control are achieved with aggressive initial local treatment. As prostate cancer care becomes increasingly focused on identifying the minority of patients who would benefit from aggressive systemic therapy, a reevaluation of the potential contribution of the prostatic acid phosphatase test seems timely.

LOS ANGELES—Cougar Biotechnology, Inc.'s CB7630 (abiraterone acetate) was well tolerated at doses as high as 2,000 mg/d with minimal toxicity in a phase I/II trial of chemotherapy-naive patients with castration-refractory prostate cancer, who had progressive disease despite treatment with LHRH analogs and multiple other hormonal therapies. Of 30 evaluable patients, 18 (60%) had a confirmed decline in PSA of greater than 50%, while 10 (33%) had declines greater than 90%. Of 20 evaluable patients with measurable lesions, 11 (55%) had a partial radiological response, while 7 had ongoing stable disease and 3 had regressing bone disease. The data were presented at the American Urological Association (AUA) annual meeting.

The third-generation epothilone KOS-1803 may optimize tumor penetration while limiting exposure to other tissues

Dendreon Corporation recently announced that it received a Complete Response Letter, commonly referred to as an "approvable" letter, on May 8, 2007 from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding its Biologics License Application (BLA) for sipuleucel-T (Provenge) for the treatment of asymptomatic, metastatic, androgen-independent prostate cancer.

Endocare, Inc, a medical device company focused on the development of minimally invasive technologies for tissue and tumor ablation, announced that a randomized clinical trial of 244 men with localized prostate cancer demonstrated that cryoablation, a minimally invasive method of freezing cancerous tumors to destroy them, is at least as effective as external-beam radiation when used to treat localized prostate cancer

Dendreon Corporation recently announced that it received a Complete Response Letter, commonly referred to as an "approvable" letter, on May 8, 2007 from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding its Biologics License Application (BLA) for sipuleucel-T (Provenge) for the treatment of asymptomatic, metastatic, androgen-independent prostate cancer.

Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for prostate cancer may be associated with increased risk of death from cardiac disease in men aged 65 and older

The advent of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening has increased early detection and treatment of prostate cancer. Most patients respond well to prostatectomy or localized radiation therapy if the cancer is diagnosed before it metastasizes. As a result, the mortality rate from prostate cancer has fallen significantly since the late 1980s.

Irreversible electroporation (IRE), a new nonthermal ablative modality that destroys parenchymal tissue while leaving vasculature and nerves intact, appears to be promising for application in the prostate

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has updated its 2004 clinical practice guideline on the initial hormonal management of androgen-sensitive metastatic, recurrent, or progressive prostate cancer

An FDA advisory panel has supported the requested approval of the cancer vaccine Provenge (sipuleucel-T, Dendreon) for the treatment of asymptomatic, metastatic, hormone-refractory prostate cancer.

Spectrum Pharmaceuticals, Inc, recently announced that the New Drug Application (NDA) for satraplatin has been accepted for priority review by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). A Prescription Drug User Fee Act date of August 15, 2007, has been established by the FDA for a decision regarding the approval of the satraplatin application. Satraplatin is an investigational drug for the treatment of hormone-refractory prostate cancer in patients who have failed prior chemotherapy.

The advent of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening has increased early detection and treatment of prostate cancer. Most patients respond well to prostatectomy or localized radiation therapy if the cancer is diagnosed before it metastasizes. As a result, the mortality rate from prostate cancer has fallen significantly since the late 1980s.

patient is a 67-year-old male with mild obstructive symptoms and an American Urology Association symptom score of 8.[1] He was noted to have a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level of 3.2 ng/mL. Because this represented a significant increase in his PSA velocity (rate of change over time), he proceeded to have a biopsy, which was positive for prostate cancer. He has no other complaints and visits us for an opinion on the treatment of his prostate cancer.

Focal cryoablation for prostate cancer—the so-called male lumpectomy—appears to be an effective alternative to treatments that involve the whole gland, with lower rates of adverse effects

Dutasteride, a 5-alpha-reductase (SRD5A) inhibitor currently used to treat benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), produces genetic changes in normal prostate tissue that may be protective against the development of prostate cancer

A new multicenter, randomized, phase III trial of Therion Biologics' Prostvac-VF prostate cancer vaccine is currently underway. The vaccine consists of a virus modified to carry the gene sequence for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and the transgenes for three T-cell co-stimulatory molecules (TRICOM). It is designed to help the immune system kill prostate cancer cells.

Men with indolent, very-low-risk prostate cancer who are eligible to be managed with active surveillance or "watchful waiting" appear to be reluctant to choose this strategy, researchers said at ASCO's 2007 Prostate Cancer Symposium

Men with low- and intermediate-risk early-stage prostate cancer who received external-beam radiation therapy (RT) did not live as long as those who were treated with brachy-therapy or radical prostatectomy, researchers said at ASCO's 2007 Prostate Cancer Symposium

In a phase III study, toremifene (Acapodene), a selective estrogen receptor modulator, increased bone mineral density (BMD) and improved lipid profiles in men receiving androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for advanced prostate cancer, and may prove to be a useful adjunct to protect against the multiple serious adverse effects of ADT

The number of early stage prostate cancers being detected by PSA screening appears to have leveled off; similarly, the gains in cure rates due to early detection may have reached their limit.

The Jay Monahan Center for Gastrointestinal Health at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center is teaming up with New York City's taxi drivers to remind New Yorkers and visitors to the city to get screened for colon cancer.

Satraplatin, an investigational oral platinum agent, given in combination with prednisone, slows the progression of hormone-refractory prostate cancer, according to the phase III Satraplatin and Prednisone Against Refractory Cancer (SPARC) trial presented at the 2007 Prostate Cancer Symposium (abstract 145).

There has been a resurgence of interest in developing noncytotoxic immune therapies for patients with either hormone-naive biochemically relapsed post-primary therapy or castrate metastatic prostate cancer. The rationale for developing an immunotherapeutic approach has been based on the overexpression and underglycosylation of a wide variety of altered "self" molecules including prostate-specific antigen (PSA), acid phosphatase (ACP), prostate stem cell antigen (PSCA), and prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA), which can serve as targets for immune recognition and attack. In addition, such a strategy could theoretically make use of the patient's immune system to fight the tumor particularly if their disease is of reasonably low volume. A variety of immunotherapeutic approaches have been explored through phase I, II, and now phase III trials demonstrating that immunologic tolerance could be broken, as evidenced by the development of high-titer antibodies and T-cell responses specific for the tumor. What appears to be revolutionizing the immunotherapy field is the combination of vaccines with cytokines or immune modulators, which not only potentiate immune reactivity in vivo but foster dramatic antitumor responses. This review explores the challenges now faced in establishing a role for immune therapies for prostate cancer treatment.