New Study Finds Certain Hormone Therapy Regimens Don't Benefit Some Prostate Cancer Patients

A new study published in The Lancet suggests that “adding hormone therapy to post-operative radiotherapy may provide little survival benefit for most men with prostate cancer.”

Men with low PSA levels prior to radiotherapy saw no improvement in overall survival when they received either short-term or long-term radiation therapy. Those with higher PSA levels “may see modest improvements in survival and metastasis-free survival, suggesting hormone therapy may be beneficial primarily for this higher-risk group.”

Hormone therapy “has been shown to improve outcomes when combined with radiotherapy in men whose prostates are still intact. However, whether it has a similar benefit for men receiving radiotherapy after prior surgery has remained unclear.” It also carries significant side effects, “including severe fatigue, hot flashes, sexual dysfunction, weight gain, bone loss, and metabolic changes that can increase cardiovascular risk.”

The team analyzed data from “6,057 men enrolled in six randomized trials comparing post-operative radiotherapy alone to radiotherapy combined with either short-term (4-6 months) or long-term (24 months) hormone therapy.” Overall, “83.6% of men who received post-operative radiotherapy alone were alive after 10 years, compared with 84.3% for those who received post-operative radiotherapy plus hormone therapy.” Long-term therapy also showed a “small survival benefit, particularly for men with higher PSA levels after prostatectomy,” while short-term therapy “did not improve overall survival.”