Key Points:
- Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among men in the U.S.
- Abiraterone acetate is used most commonly as a treatment option for men with castration-resistant prostate cancer.
- Researchers have now identified an 11-gene drug panel that provided a new tool to individualize treatment for abiraterone acetate.
Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among men in the U.S., with more than 268,490 new diagnoses annually and an estimated 34,500 deaths. However, there is no standard treatment as there are several drug choices available, and questions remain over which drugs to use in individual cases.
Abiraterone acetate is used most commonly as a treatment option for men with castration-resistant prostate cancer. However, the response rate is limited, no known biomarkers predict prognosis, and alternative therapies for those who failed treatment are unavailable.
In a new study, known as PROMOTE, Mayo Clinic researchers revealed DNA sequences associated with response to abiraterone acetate to identify additional treatment options for men with advanced prostate cancer resistant to all standard therapies. They identified an 11-gene drug panel that provided a new tool to individualize treatment for abiraterone acetate. The 11-gene panel predicted a worse prognosis for a subset of primary or metastatic patients enrolled in the study.
The researchers then analyzed whole-exome sequencing and RNA sequence data from 83 patients with metastatic biopsies before and after 12 weeks of abiraterone acetate/prednisone treatment. They identified genomic alterations associated with acquired resistance after 12 weeks of this treatment.
Hugues Sicotte, a Mayo Clinic bioinformatician and lead author of the study published in Molecular Cancer Research, says biomarkers based on the stage-specific landscape of genomic changes in prostate cancer are still under investigation.
"Further studies will be needed to test these drug treatments to overcome abiraterone acetate/prednisone resistance and define subgroups of nonresponders," said Sicotte. "Our goal is to incorporate these into clinical practice for physicians and patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer."
Information provided by Mayo Clinic.