Androgen deprivation therapy found beneficial for localizedprostate cancer

Primary androgen deprivation therapy appears to control localized prostate cancer in the majority of patients who receive it, at least for an intermediate period, according to a study published in Cancer (2006; 106:1708-14). However, such patients appear to be unique, on the basis of sociodemographic characteristics, comorbidity status, and risk factors compared with patients who receive other forms of therapy.

Using data from the Cancer of the Prostate Strategic Urologic Endeavor (CaPSURE), researchers from the University of California-San Francisco Cancer Center identified patients who had received treatment with primary androgen deprivation therapy between 1989 and 2002 for clinically localized disease. Clinical data, sociodemographic data, and time-to-failure data were analyzed.

Of 7,045 men, 993 patients with clinically localized disease had received primary androgen deprivation therapy. At 5 years after the initiation of primary androgen deprivation, 67.3% of patients still were receiving treatment with androgen deprivation only, 13.8% had gone on to receive definitive second treatment, 3.9% underwent second-line therapy, 4% had died of prostate cancer, and 19% had died of all causes.

Compared with patients who had undergone standard treatment, patients who had received androgen deprivation therapy had higher-risk disease, more comorbidities, had lower income, were older, less educated, and more likely to have Medicare than private insurance.