Dr Calais on Controversies in the Treatment of Patients With Prostate Cancer

Jeremie Calais, MD, PhD, physician, nuclear medicine, associate professor, Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, director, Theranostics Program, Ahmanson Translational Theranostics Division, faculty member, the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, faculty member, the Institute of Urologic Oncology, faculty member, the Physics and Biology in Medicine Graduate Program, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), UCLA Health, discusses controversies and unresolved questions in the treatment of patients with prostate cancer.

At the 2024 US Prostate Cancer Conference (USPCC), medical oncologists, urologists, and many other individuals came together to provide clinicians with valuable knowledge and confidence to maintain state-of-the-art care and optimize outcomes for patients with prostate cancer. Calais begins by stating that one such area of interest at the meeting was controversies within the field; numerous controversies and unresolved queries persist across various subjects. Calais says that from his perspective, as a nuclear medicine specialist, he finds it highly beneficial to participate in this gathering of predominantly medical oncologists.

Although urologists, radiation oncologists, and nuclear medicine specialists are also present at the meeting, most of the attendees are medical oncologists, he states. Nevertheless, it's invaluable to foster this multidisciplinary environment for addressing inquiries, Calais adds.

Prostate cancer is increasingly intricate, with a surge in diagnostics, biomarkers, and treatment options, necessitating a multidisciplinary treatment approach, Calais continues. Consequently, numerous uncertainties emerge, and as more tests are conducted and more advancements are made, more questions arise, he elucidates. Specifically, within nuclear medicine, there's ongoing exploration of optimizing PET imaging for generating superior treatment outcomes and enhancing the utilization of prostate-specific membrane antigen–targeted radiopharmaceutical therapy, Calais notes.

These areas represent significant points of discussion and potential contention for nuclear medicine practitioners at this meeting, he explains. Moreover, the complexity of these discussions often leads to further exploration and the identification of specific expertise questions, expanding the scope of inquiry and fostering collaborative efforts among specialists, Calais concludes.