A treatment described as groundbreaking could benefit hundreds of men with advanced prostate cancer if approved in the UK.
Trials have shown that a combination of two drugs – enzalutamide and talazoparib – can halve the risk of prostate cancer progression.
The treatment is part of a class of new precision drugs that allow tumors to be targeted more precisely.
And while the combination was recently given the green light by US regulators, a UK decision is expected later this year. Last month, researchers published the results of a global study involving more than 800 men with a certain type of prostate cancer caused by specific genetic changes.
The findings, published in the Lancet, showed that the combination of drugs reduced the risk of the cancer progressing by 55 percent compared to standard treatment for those patients.
STOCK IMAGE: A treatment described as groundbreaking could benefit hundreds of men with advanced prostate cancer if approved in the UK
The study was led by Dr. Neeraj Agarwal of the Huntsman Cancer Institute in Utah and was shortly followed by approval by the US Food and Drug Administration.
Neli Ulrich, head of scientific research at the Huntsman Cancer Institute, said: “This work is absolutely groundbreaking. It will make a big difference in treatment options for many prostate cancer patients.’
Talazoparib is part of a class of new precision prostate cancer treatments called PARP inhibitors that work by blocking a protein that repairs cancer cells. Enzalutamide is a form of hormone therapy for men whose prostate cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
The combination is currently scheduled to be reviewed in September by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice), the UK regulator.
And if given the green light, experts say it could benefit “several hundred men a year” with advanced prostate cancer.
However, important questions remain, including whether the current benefit of slowing the rate at which cancer progresses can translate into a meaningful extension of life.
And if life expectancy is increased, experts say it’s important to find out if it only benefits men with prostate cancer caused by a particular genetic mutation.
The Mail has relaunched our End Unnecessary Prostate Deaths campaign in an effort to improve the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer.
The Mail has been fighting for nearly 25 years to draw attention to cancer, which kills a man every 45 minutes in Britain. More than 50,000 men are diagnosed each year, making it the second most common cancer in men and the second most common.
Dr. Matthew Hobbs, from Prostate Cancer UK, said: ‘Treatments targeting specific genetic changes in prostate cancer are really exciting.
“Targeted treatments won’t work for every man, however, and we need to be careful to make sure they’re only given to those who really benefit, so those who don’t can move on to other treatments and avoid unnecessary.” avoid side effects. .’