Dose-escalated radiation therapy with and without short-course androgen deprivation for intermediate-risk prostate cancer.

AIM: To investigate outcomes in intermediate-risk (IR) prostate cancer patients receiving dose-escalated external beam radiation therapy (RT) with or without short-course androgen deprivation (ADT). PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study comprised of 203 patients with IR prostate cancer who were treated at a single institution to a dose of 7,560 cGy or more between 2003-2010. Of these, 62 (30.5%) patients received ADT. Biochemical recurrence, distant metastatic-free survival, prostate cancer-specific survival, and overall survival were analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. RESULTS: The median follow-up was 62 months and the median duration of ADT was 6 months. The 6-year biochemical control was 89.2% for those receiving RT plus ADT versus 76.7% in those receiving RT alone (p=0.02). There were no differences between the two groups regarding distant metastatic-free survival, prostate cancer-specific survival, and overall survival (respective p-values of 0.91, 0.50, 0.67). CONCLUSION: Dose-escalated RT and short-course ADT results in improved biochemical outcomes for IR prostate cancer.

Radiation therapy for clinically localized prostate cancer: long-term results of 469 patients from a single institution in the era of dose escalation.

AIMS: The aim of the following study is to analyze the long-term results of veterans treated with dose escalated radiation therapy for prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This retrospective study analyzed 469 patients who were treated between 2003 and 2010 with dose escalated radiation therapy to a minimum dose of 7560 cGy for prostate cancer at the New York Harbor Department of Veterans Affairs. Biochemical failure-free survival (bFFS) and distant metastatic-free survival (DMFS) were compared using the Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate Cox Regression were used to measure the impact of covariates on biochemical control. RESULTS: The median follow-up was 61 months and 95.3% of patients were followed at least 2 years. The 5-year bFFS for National Cancer Care Network low, intermediate and high risk disease were 90.3%, 86.9% and 77.3% respectively (P=0.001). Patients with high risk disease were more likely to develop metastatic disease. The 5-year DMFS was 99.1% for low risk, 98.8% for intermediate risk and 94.5% for high-risk (P<0.001). There were 8 prostate cancer related deaths, of which 6 had high risk disease and 2 had intermediate risk disease. The 5-year prostate cancer specific survival was 98.4%. Toxicities were generally mild, however there were two genitourinary toxicity related deaths, though in both patients there were confounding medical issues that may have contributed to their deaths. CONCLUSIONS: Dose escalated radiation in the treatment of United States Veterans appears to be well-tolerated with results in line with prior reports. Further follow-up is necessary to identify any additional late toxicities as well as to assess the durability of their biochemical control beyond 5 years.