What's known on the subject? and What does the study add? The interplay between urologists and oncologists in the treatment of prostate cancer has been long standing. Recent paradigm shifts in treatment are reviewed with an emphasis on how these treatments may eventually alter the dynamic equilibrium between urology and oncology specialists. The treatment landscape for men with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) is undergoing significant changes; a redefinition of the respective roles of oncologists and urologists will probably occur. In addition, the advent of the multidisciplinary team or coordinated-care approach, which has been gathering momentum over the last decade, will become not simply a preference but a clear necessity. In the present review, we explore the current wave of new treatments and describe the possibility of more complex approaches to combined therapy. New treatment options include abiraterone acetate, cabazitaxel, MDV3100 (in development), radium-223 (in development) and sipuleucel-T. We also present the traditional roles of the urologist and oncologist in caring for patients with CRPC and discuss how these may change. Compounding the new potential for treatment success, as well as the complexity of therapeutic strategies, is the emergence of novel biomarkers to evaluate treatment efficacy and to assist in patient prognosis. The prospects for successful treatment of patients with CRPC have developed considerably so that these patients may soon have a reasonable expectation of therapeutic efficacy and meaningful extension of their lives.
Written by:
Sartor AO, Fitzpatrick JM Are you the author?
Departments of Medicine and Urology, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA, USA Department of Surgery, Mater Misericordiae Hospital, University College, Dublin, Ireland
Reference: BJU Int. 2012 Aug;110(3):328-35
doi: 10.1111/j.1464-410X.2011.10818.x
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 22712568