In catching up on some news from a few months ago, I realized that much had been written recently about treating men with an early stage of advanced prostate cancer. So here is some information in addition to the following posts; The FDA Approves Apalutamide for Some Men with Prostate Cancer; and Xtandi Extends Metastasis-Free Survival in more »
I realize this is somewhat old news but I’d like to share it anyway. On February 14, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved apalutamide (Erleada) for men with prostate cancer that has not spread (non-metastatic) and is resistant to standard hormone therapy, also called androgen deprivation therapy (ADT). In the clinical trial that led to its approval, more »
Men with nonmetastatic, castration (hormone)-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) and a rapidly rising prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level are at high risk for metastasis. Currently, only one recently approved treatment, Erleada® (apalutamide), is available to these patients. Xtandi®, an androgen receptor inhibitor, is an approved treatment for metastatic CRPC patients. It has been shown to delay disease progression and prolong more »
The National Cancer Institute (NCI), the largest institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), recently posted a short (3-4 minute) but very illustrative video showing and describing three ways how our immune system fights cancer. These methods include: a) non-specific immune stimulation, as illustrated in bladder cancer; b) T-cell transfer therapy, somewhat similar to how more »
This website has been active for some years now and it is about time for an update of the site in general as well as indiviudual posts. The first change we have made is that all of the hundreds of posts have been separated into one of the following categories: 1) General Patient Information; 2) more »
The following is bad news for men in England with advanced prostate cancer. The rationale behind making this drug unavailable to men was cost. If anyone here in the US recommends we switch to the British system of health care, this should serve as a wakeup call against it. The therapy as described in the more »
The Prostate Cancer Foundation recently published a comprehensive patient guide. I may have sent this post before but if not see the following link.
I recently came across an excellent review on the pros and cons of prostate cancer surgery as published by the Prostate Cancer Research Institute (PCRI). I am linking the review. If you are contemplating surgery, please read it and discuss it with your surgeon. You might also want to verify the opinions expressed in this more »
A few nights ago, I could not sleep so I sat up and decided to read something light until I got sleepy. Instead a still small voice inside me suggested I use the time alone to talk to God in conversational prayer. As I often do after thanking Him for a number of blessings in more »
In early May, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) finalized its new prostate cancer screening recommendation, which upgrades its recommendation for men 55 – 69 years old to a C rating. While the updated rating is a step forward, many say it’s not enough. The decade-long message that discouraged men from getting tested has more »
We who struggle with various medical conditions are often either seeking guidance from God about specific decisions or awaiting results and answers to our prayers. In Psalm 130, the author writes about being in deep distress facing a situation that feels like the blackest of nights. He writes in verse one “out of the depths more »
Drugs targeting poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) are helping patients battle back more effectively against cancer. An enzyme, PARP helps repair damaged DNA in cells, and while that’s a good thing in healthy people, it can be bad news for cancer patients. To prevent PARP from repairing DNA breaks in cancer cells, AstraZeneca developed Lynparza, a PARP inhibitor (PARPi) more »
Zero-the Project to End Prostate Cancer recently published an e mail manual for men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer and for their families. It can be found at the following link. Topics include prostate cancer basics, methods used in its diagnosis including genomic testing, interpretation of test results, choosing the right health care professionals and more »
On February 8th, the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new indication for Zytiga® (abiraterone acetate) in combination with prednisone for the treatment of patients with metastatic high-risk hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (HSPC). The approval is based on Phase 3 data from the pivotal more »
As part of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus spoke the following words from Matthew 6:25-30 about worry and anxiety, emotions and feelings most of us with prostate cancer can relate to. “Do not be anxious for your own life, what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor for your body as to more »
On Feb. 14th, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved apalutamide (Erleada®, previously called ARN-509) for the treatment of non-metastatic, castration (hormone)-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). Apalutamide could be administered in a clinical setting wherein men who are being treated with androgen (hormone) deprivation therapy (ADT) see their PSA levels begin to rise, but no metastases more »
According to results just recently presented at the February 2018 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco, treatment with Xtandi® (enzalutamide) reduced the risk of metastasis or death in hormone-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) patients whose cancer has not yet spread beyond the prostate, Pfizer and Japan-based Astellas Pharma recently announced. The Phase 3 PROSPER clinical trial more »
OncBioMune’s investigational cancer vaccine ProscaVax reduced tumor growth in 70% of prostate cancer patients included in a Phase 1a study. The immunotherapy candidate consists of a combination of the PSA protein (a hallmark of prostate cancer) with the cytokines — molecules produced by immune cells — interleukin-2 (IL-2) and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). The clinical trial (NCT02058680) is evaluating the safety more »
At the time of this writing, there are thirteen (14) drugs currently approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of prostate cancer. There are others which are in various stages of clinical development or review. A number of these have been mentioned in earlier blog posts on this website. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) more »