In late March, the F.D.A A new therapy is approved For advanced prostate cancer that’s metastasizing, or spreading, throughout the body. Called Pluvicto (and likewise lutetium-177-PSMA-617), and delivered by intravenous infusion, the treatment can find and destroy tumors which might be still too small to see with conventional forms of medical imaging. are very small.
Pluvicto is specifically approved for men who’ve already been treated with other anticancer treatments, including chemotherapy and hormonal treatments that block the tumor-promoting hormone testosterone. The drug has two parts: one which binds to a protein on the surface of prostate cancer cells called PSMA, and a radioactive particle that kills the cancer cells. Most normal cells don’t contain PSMA, or only at very low levels. This allows Pluvicto to attack tumors while sparing healthy tissue.
To confirm whether a person qualifies for the drug, doctors first inject a radioactive tracer that travels through the bloodstream looking for after which attaches to the PSMA protein. Cancer cells flagged by the tracer will show up on a special scanning technology called positron emission tomography. About 80% of prostate cancer patients have PSMA-positive tumors. For those that don’t, the treatment is ineffective.
During Clinical trial As a results of the approval of Pluvicto, 831 men were randomly allocated to 2 groups. One group of men received Pluvicto plus standard-of-care treatments, while men within the control group received only standard-of-care. All the boys had metastatic, castration-resistant prostate cancer, meaning their tumors were spreading and now not responding to hormonal therapy.
Conclusions and considerations
Results after 21 months showed that Pluvicto was simpler at delaying the cancer's progression. Among men taking the drug, it took a mean of 8.7 months for his or her tumors to grow back, compared with 3.4 months for men receiving standard care. Pluvicto was also related to higher overall survival: 15.3 months vs 11.3 months. The drug was generally well tolerated, but had uncomfortable side effects including fatigue, nausea, kidney problems, and bone marrow suppression.
Meanwhile, additional questions remain about who might have the opportunity to get the drug. “What about men with metastatic prostate cancer who have never been treated with chemotherapy?” asks Dr. Einstein. “If you go hard. The label, then chemotherapy is required first. But some men are too sick for chemotherapy, or they might refuse it due to possible uncomfortable side effects.” is helpful, or if combined with other treatments can enhance its effects.