Chemotherapy with Taxotere Improves Survival over OtherChemo Combos

 Taxotere (docetaxel), a chemotherapy drug approved by the FDA last year, has been shown to be more effective in improving survival over historical standard chemotherapy combinations. According to results from two clinical trials published in 2004 in the New England Journal of Medicine, and reported at the recent ASCO Prostate Cancer Symposium, chemo combinations based on Taxotere are more effective over standard chemo regimens in patients that are hormone-refractory, or those that have become resistant to traditional hormone therapy.

 Dr. Daniel Petrylak, one of the key Principal Investigators for the Taxotere trials, provided a historical perspective on the treatment of prostate cancer. Hormone therapy is given to reduce levels of male hormones, which are responsible in part for the growth of prostate cancer.  Unfortunately, patients ultimately stop responding to hormone therapy after being on treatment, and are then referred to as having hormone-refractory prostate cancer. Once they reach this level, patients have limited effective treatment options, and combinations of agents are used, such as the chemo agency mitoxantrone (Novantrone) and the steroid prednisone.

 In the first clinical trial, a direct comparison of Taxotere/prednisone to the historical treatment of mitoxantrone plus prednisone was given to hormone-refractory patients. The NEJM reported that of the 1,006 patients, the average survival for the Taxotere combo was 19 months, compared to 16.5 months with the mitoxantrone-based regimen. In the second trial, Taxotere and the chemo agent estramustine was compared to chemo agent mitoxantrone and prednisone. In the Taxotere group, average survival was 18 months, compared to 15 months for those treated with the other regimen   a 20% decline in mortality and a 27% increase in Progression Free Survival (PFS). Equally important was the decline in PSA rates (50% vs. 27%) for the new treatment standard.

 Since these studies were published, there have been other studies by researchers in the U.S. and  elsewhere in the world that have shown that Taxotere (docetaxel) is a chemotherapy agent that  continues to show promising activity in the treatment of prostate cancer. Taxotere works by inhibiting tubulin, a protein essential to cell division, thereby preventing cancer cells from dividing and growing in number. Taxotere is the only drug approved for breast, lung and prostate cancer, three of the most prevalent cancers. It was approved for combination use in prostate cancer in May of last year.

Patients with hormone refractory prostate cancer should speak with their oncologist about the risks and benefits of using Taxotere for treatment of their disease state, as well as participating in one of the on-going trials using Taxotere and other agents in combination therapy.

 Based on New England Journal of Medicine and Urology articles, Aventis Pharmaceuticals news release, and U.S. FDA press release.
Page last updated May 2005

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