Published data: New therapy improves survival in advanced PCa

Cabazitaxel (Jevtana) injection, in combination with prednisone, reduced the risk of death by 30% in men with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer whose disease progressed following treatment with docetaxel (Taxotere)-based chemotherapy, according to a recent study.

Data from the phase III TROPIC study, which was the basis for the June 2010 FDA approval of cabazitaxel, were published in The Lancet (2010; 376:1119-20). The findings were initially reported at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago.

Results of the study showed that the combination of cabazitaxel and prednisone significantly reduced the risk of death by 30% (HR=0.70 [95% CI: 0.59-0.83]; pp

In addition, patients in the cabazitaxel combination arm showed a significantly higher rate of tumor response (14.4 [95% CI: 9.6-19.3; ppp

"We are proud to have been involved in the development of this drug, which will offer new hope to men with advanced prostate cancer who have exhausted other treatment options," said first author Johann de Bono, MD, PhD, of The Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, London. "This is one of only a small handful of drugs shown to prolong the life of men with advanced prostate cancer."

Dr. de Bono and co-authors of this study disclosed financial interest or other relationship with sanofi-aventis.