Short-Term Hormone Therapy Can Delay Prostate Cancer Growth By Up To 8 Years

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Short-Term Hormone Therapy Can Delay Prostate Cancer Growth By Up To 8 Years

by GLORIA GAMAT on January 4th, 2008

Just four months of hormonal (androgen deprivation) therapy before and with standard external beam radiation therapy slowed cancer growth by as much as eight years–especially the development of bone metastases–and increased survival in older men with potentially aggressive prostate cancer.

Such were the findings reported by researchers of the Radiation Therapy Oncology Group.

This “neoadjuvant” hormonal therapy may allow men most at risk of developing bone metastases avoid long-term hormonal therapy later on.

Furthermore, the short-term hormonal therapy did not increase the risk of cardiovascular disease–a potential side effect of long-term hormonal therapy.

According to lead author Mack Roach III, MD, professor and chair of radiation oncology and professor of urology at the University of California, San Francisco:

“This study demonstrates that the benefits of short-term hormonal therapy for men receiving radiation therapy for prostate cancer far outweigh the risks.

While four months of hormonal therapy isn’t enough to cause significant side effects, we found that it can delay the development of bone metastasis by as many as eight years, which is very significant.

So by taking a little bit of hormonal therapy early, patients may avoid having to take a lot of it later.”

The study is published online January 2 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Find more details from American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Tags: androgen-deprivation-therapy-(ADT), prostate-cancer