[Therapy of hormone refractory prostate cancer: new standards, new trends]

Abstract

Hormone-refractory prostate cancer is diagnosed with increasing incidence and has become a growing challenge for urologists. The improved understanding of the tumor biological mechanisms of the hormone-refractory state has led to innovative therapeutic developments in the field of hormonal and cytotoxic therapies. Recently, two large randomized Phase III trials with docetaxel-based chemotherapy were able to show prolonged survival and a positive influence on pain and quality of life, establishing a new standard of care for these patients. Moreover, bisphosphonates seem to have positive influence on selected patients. In the growing field of molecular targeted therapy, first trials with compounds, such as tyrosine kinase inhibitors, anti-sense oligonucleotides, angiogenesis inhibitors and endothelin receptor antagonists, show promising results in the treatment of patients with hormone-refractory prostate cancer.