Provange plus Avastin shows good results in prostate cancer
Findings from a recent phase II trial have shown that a combination of provange and avastin may be beneficial for patients with prostate cancer. The study population consisted of 22 patients who had androgen depended prostate cancer and was having increasing levels of PSA. All patients had undergone previous definitive treatment either in the form of radiation therapy or surgery. All patients received a combination of APC8015 (provenge) in combination with avastin. The treatment was continued until patient had either disease progression or intolerable side effects.
Out of 22 patients 21 were evaluable for end points of the study. The median PSA doubling time in these patients was 6.7 months and median time on treatment was 12.7 months. No patients on the study had objective disease progression (onset of measurable bone or soft tissue metastasis). Four patients could not continue with the study due to toxicities and were removed from the study.
These results come from an NCI sponsored phase II study presented by Brian I. Rini MD assistant professor of medicine at University of California, San Francisco at 2005 Multidisciplinary Prostate Cancer Symposium (abstract 251).
"These results provide encouraging proof of concept that provange can be safely combined and work synergistically with other immune modulating therapies such as avastin for the treatment of men with prostate cancer" Dr. Rini commented.
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