Emerging role of adjuvant hormonal therapy

Effectiveness of androgen deprivation therapy in prolonging survival of older men treated for locoregional prostate cancer

Epidemiologic and experimental evidence suggests the effectiveness of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in prostate cancer (CaP) management. Although ADT has been increasingly used as mono-therapy in CaP, the survival benefit of ADT remains unclear. We examined the effectiveness of ADT in prolonging survival in a community-based cohort of 64 475 older men diagnosed with locoregional CaP, in 1992-1999 with last follow-up through December 2002, in 11 Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) registries. The effect of ADT on survival was assessed using Kaplan-Meier's method, log-rank test and Cox proportional hazards. After adjustment for propensity to receive ADT, the ADT and non-ADT groups were significantly different in the distribution of covariates except for comorbidity score and SEER registries. The crude overall mortality was significantly higher in cases with ADT compared with cases that received no ADT, hazard ratio (HR=1.54; 95% CI=1.50-1.58). However, mortality was substantially reduced (1.04, 1.00-1.08) after adjusting for standard care, socio-demographics, tumor characteristics, prognostic factors and chemotherapy. Therefore, ADT was not associated with significantly increased survival benefit for older men with locoregional CaP. Further studies may be needed to explore whether ADT is associated with other health benefits and the cost-effectiveness of these benefits.

Antiandrogen monotherapy: indications and results

Many patients with prostate cancer for whom hormonal therapy is indicated are still physically and sexually active; quality of life is therefore a vital issue when considering treatment options. Traditional castration-based therapies, although effective, have implications with respect to quality of life, causing loss of libido, impotence, fatigue, and reduced bone mineral density. Monotherapy with a nonsteroidal antiandrogen is an attractive therapeutic alternative to castration, offering effective therapy with potential quality-of-life benefits. Of the available nonsteroidal antiandrogens, bicalutamide has been most extensively evaluated in the monotherapy setting. Mature combined data (56% mortality) from 2 large randomized studies show no statistically significant difference in overall survival between bicalutamide 150-mg monotherapy and castration in patients with locally advanced, nonmetastatic (stage M0) disease. Survival outcome in patients with metastatic (stage M1) disease (43% mortality) favored castration, although the difference in median survival between the groups was only 6 weeks. Bicalutamide 150-mg monotherapy was associated with significant advantages compared with castration, in terms of sexual interest and physical capacity, in patients with either M0 and M1 stage disease. Data from a small subgroup of patients with stage M0 disease suggest that bicalutamide may also reduce the risk of osteoporosis compared with castration. Long-term therapy with bicalutamide 150-mg monotherapy is generally well tolerated, with a predictable side-effect profile. The most common side effects are male breast pain and gynecomastia. Emerging evidence also supports the use of bicalutamide 150 mg, both as immediate monotherapy and as adjuvant therapy in early stage (localized or locally advanced) prostate cancer.