08/26/2009 - News
Denosumab Increases Bone Density In Prostate Cancer Patients
By: June Chen, MD
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Prostate cancer patients treated with androgen-deprivation therapy are at risk for bone loss and increased likelihood of fracture.
According to a study published in the August 20, 2009 issues of New England Journal of Medicine, treatment with a monoclonal antibody called denosumab was associated with increased bone density and reduced incidence of new fractures affecting the spine among men receiving androgen-deprivation therapy for non-metastatic prostate cancer.
Scientists from the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and their colleagues randomly assigned androgen-deprivation therapy-treated prostate cancer patients to receive either denosumab or a placebo every 6 months. The researchers found that, at 24 months, bone density of the lumbar spine had increased 5.6% among prostate cancer patients in the denosumab group as compared with a loss of 1.0% in the placebo group. Denosumab therapy was also associated with significant increases in bone density at the total hip, femoral neck, and distal third of the radius. Furthermore, significant differences in bone density between the two groups were detected as early at 1 month and sustained through 36 months of follow-up. Prostate cancer patients who received denosumab also had a decreased incidence of new vertebral fractures at 36 months.
Based on the findings of this study, denosumab therapy significantly reduces the bone-related adverse effects of androgen-deprivation therapy among patients with non-metastatic prostate cancer.
Source:
NEJM. 2009:361:745-755.
Created on: 08/26/2009
Reviewed on: 08/26/2009
Reviewed on: 08/26/2009
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