28
Sep 2021
New drug combination could halve risk of prostate cancer patients from dying
Thousands of prostate cancer patients could live longer after taking a new combination of radiotherapy, hormone treatment and pills.
In the UK, around 10,000 men a year are estimated to have an aggressive form of the disease, which is usually treated with radiotherapy and hormone therapy.
A recent study has found that also giving them a drug called abiraterone halves their risk of dying from the cancer over six years.
In January this year, abiraterone was refused to men with more advanced prostate cancer, after the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence ruled it was not cost-effective and should not be offered routinely.
However, the new trial in a different group of men, whose prostate cancer had not spread, found that when the drug was taken for two years, it greatly improved their chances of survival.
Experts are hoping that following the results, the drug could soon be made available on the NHS.
Professor Gerhardt Attard, co-author of the study, said “Based on these results, all men with high-risk non-metastatic prostate cancer should be considered for two years of abiraterone.”
Nick James, co-author and professor of prostate and bladder cancer research at the Institute of Cancer Research, said “The results were spectacular – that is really the only word for it. We are in active discussions with NHS England about how these findings can be implemented.”
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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
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