In a nutshell
The authors determined the benefit of combination treatment with gemcitabine (Gemzar) and oxaliplatin (Eloxatin) in hormone resistant (castration-resistant) prostate cancer.
Some background
Hormone therapy is a common treatment for prostate cancer. It targets the male sex hormones active in prostate cancer, such as testosterone. Some patients can develop a resistance to hormone therapy and will no longer respond to treatment. This is known as hormone-resistant prostate cancer. Docetaxel (Taxotere) is a common drug used to treat prostate cancer that stops cancer cell growth. Other cancer drugs used include gemcitabine (stops cancer cell function) and oxaliplatin (platinum based chemotherapy).
Further studies are needed to determine the benefit of combination treatment in hormone-resistant prostate cancer.
Methods & findings
The aim of this study was to determine the benefit of combination treatment with gemcitabine and oxaliplatin in hormone-resistant prostate cancer.
33 hormone-resistant prostate cancer patients were used in this study. Patients had previously undergone docetaxel treatment which had failed. Patients received 270 cycles of combination treatment (gemcitabine and oxaliplatin) with a median (mid-point) of 8 cycles per patient. The median follow-up time was 20.5 months.
33% of patients had measurable disease (tumors that could be measured in size). 42% of patients had visceral metastases (tumors in the organs). 17 patients had died at the time of analysis.
11 patients with measurable disease experienced a partial response (tumor shrinkage but not complete disappearance) to combination treatment. 2 patients experienced stable disease (tumor did not shrink or grow in size) and showed an 82% response rate to treatment. The median time to prostate specific antigen progression (PSA – protein elevated in the blood in the presence of prostate cancer) was 5.8 months. Progression-free survival (time from treatment until cancer progressed) was 5.4 months. Overall survival (patients who were still alive following treatment) was 17.6 months. Patients had a 1-year survival rate of 65%.
The most common reasons for treatment discontinuation were cancer progression (49%) and toxicity (24%). The most common side-effects to treatment were low immune cell count, low blood cell count, urinary infection, mouth infection, fatigue and nerve numbness.
The bottom line
The authors concluded that combination treatment with gemcitabine and oxaliplatin was effective and well tolerated in hormone-resistant prostate cancer.
The fine print
Larger study groups are needed for results to be widely applied.
Published By :
British Journal of Cancer
Date :
Apr 15, 2014
