ASCO highlights; a) Early Administration of Docetaxel (Taxotere) Extends Survival; b) Intermittent vs. Continuous HormonalTherapy.

The recent national meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) contained several important presentations of interest to prostate cancer patients two of which are summarized below.

The plant-derived drug, docetaxel® (taxotere) had  been usually reserved for men whose tumors had become refractory (hormone-insensitive) and who had failed other therapies.  In a follow-up to earlier studies from Johns Hopkins and elsewhere, now researchers from Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles reported that administration of docetaxel® (taxotere) in men with localized, high-risk, hormone-sensitive, prostate cancer led to a statistically-significant improvement in overall survival with a median follow-up of more than five (5)years. The cumulative incidence of distant metastases was also reduced. In the phase III study, 562 men with median age of 66 years with high-risk, localized prostate cancer were randomly assigned to treatment with radiation plus hormone therapy or standard therapy followed by docetaxel® chemotherapy.  Half of the men had high Gleason scores of 9-10.  See the following link for details.  Early administration of docetaxel® (taxotere) has also been discussed on this website, see May 14th, 2015 and September 20th, 2014.  For more information, see the story as covered by the BBC (see link).

In another presentation, according to Columbia University researchers, men undergoing intermittent androgen-deprivation (hormonal) therapy experienced more ischemic and thrombotic events than did men assigned to continuous hormonal therapy.