Dr. Sandler on Orteronel in High-Risk Prostate Cancer

Howard M. Sandler, MD, the Chair of Radiation Oncology at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, describes his excitement over research into new agents that modulate the androgen axis in prostate cancer.

The current standard treatment for high-risk locally advanced prostate is a combination of radiation therapy and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) with traditional hormonal therapies, such as LHRH and GnRH agonists. There is optimism, Sandler notes, that newer agents could improve the effectiveness of this treatment approach.

To explore this hypothesis further, the randomized phase III RTOG 1115 protocol was formed. This trial combines orteronel (TAK-700) with standard long-term ADT and concurrent dose escalated radiation therapy in men with high-risk, locally advanced prostate cancer. This trial is still ongoing, but the hope is that driving androgen levels lower will improve overall survival, Sandler notes.