Media

+

Doctor

Canada

"New drug may help aggressive prostate cancer: study"

Source: CTV.CA

Published: 23 Jul 2022

Category: Pharmaceutical

Rating: (3 stars)

what they said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)

A new prostate cancer drug could extend the lives of patients with an aggressive form of the disease, the first phase of a clinical trial suggests.

British scientists found that the drug abiraterone significantly shrunk tumours and blocked prostate specific antigen (PSA), a protein that feeds prostate cancer development, in almost 80 per cent of study subjects...

The original article can be found at: http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20080723/prostate_drug_080723/20080723?hub=Health&s_name=

how did it rate? (more information)

Criteria	Rating
Total Score	5 of 9
Availability of Treatment	Satisfactory (?)
Novelty of Treatment	Satisfactory (?)
Disease Mongering	Satisfactory (?)
Treatment Options	Satisfactory (?)
Costs of Treatment	Not Applicable
Evidence	Not Satisfactory (?)
Quantification of Benefits of Treatment	Not Satisfactory (?)
Harms of Treatment	Satisfactory (?)
Sources of Information	Not Satisfactory (?)
Relies on Press Release	Not Applicable
Quantification of Harms of Treatment	Not Satisfactory (?)

what we said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)

Due to the novelty of this prostate treatment option and the limited amount of information available, gaps in the reporting of Abiraterone were almost inevitable. Because the article clearly in acknowledged the preliminary nature of this treatment option, these information gaps were more allowable. The article emphasized that the men involved in this study were individuals with an aggressive and unresponsive prostate cancer and that the use of Abiraterone would be designed for this select population.

Having said that, the evidence provided was weakened by an inadequate description of the study design. There was no indication as to whether the findings were based on a small randomized control trial or an observational study. Furthermore, the description of treatment benefits was not quantified but rather described how Abiraterone shrunk tumors and blocked prostate specific antigen. Although the article described how some patients were able to discontinue their use of morphine for pain related to their disease, the potential changes in survival were not mentioned.

The drug Abiraterone might eventually prove to be extremely useful, however, at this point in time, too little is known about this featured drug.

public forum

(20 Nov 2021) Susan Davis writes,

"Could you tell me when the drug Abiraterone will be available in Canada?
Thank you,
Sue"

Media Doctor response,

"i'm sorry I can't really answer that question."

(20 Jul 2022) Gregory Leo MD from tpmg inc writes,

"my dad, Melvin Leo has prostate CA . He is lupron resistant. His PSA is rising. He has no symptoms now, but will have them soon.
The chemotherapy options are not good. They only buy you 3 months and you get very sick from the treatment. Abiraterone seems like the best option. His prostate oncologist says it is a good treatment but is not available right now. I there anyway to purchase this med? His oncologist would give it to him if it were available. I would be willing to travel to any country where abiraterone is available. Can I order some from Canada or United Kingdom or anywhere else?"

Media Doctor response,

"I don't believe its available in any country yet."

voice your opinion in the forum

All comments and feedback submitted to Media Doctor are subject to editorial approval before being made viewable by the public. It may take up to a week for your comments to be approved. Additionally, no response will be given to questions posed in public comments. Media Doctor does not provide medical advice, or answers to medical questions posed by the public.
If you provide your email address it will not be displayed to the general public.
Comments may be edited by Media Doctor to remove defamatory or sensitive statements, and brand names.
Required fields are marked with an asterisk (*).