Degarelix: a new approach for the treatment of prostate cancer.
Article Details
- CitationCopy to clipboard
Persson BE, Kold Olesen T, Jensen JK
Degarelix: a new approach for the treatment of prostate cancer.
Neuroendocrinology. 2009;90(3):235-44. doi: 10.1159/000228832. Epub 2009 Jul 14.
- PubMed ID
- 19602868 [ View in PubMed]
- Abstract
Androgen deprivation therapy remains the mainstay of medical treatment for prostate cancer. Generally, this is achieved with medical androgen deprivation rather than orchidectomy, as most patients find the permanency and psychological effects of the latter unacceptable. Gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists are the most widely used androgen deprivation therapy, but do have some drawbacks. The most apparent is the induction of a transient surge in serum testosterone that may stimulate tumor growth, causing patients to experience new or worsening cancer symptoms. These may include increased bone pain and urinary retention, and consequently delay the therapeutic benefit of these agents. These shortcomings led to the development of the GnRH antagonists/receptor blockers. Degarelix is a novel GnRH receptor blocker that has an immediate onset of action, producing a rapid decrease in luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone leading to fast testosterone suppression without the initial surge associated with the GnRH agonists. Administration of subcutaneous degarelix depot has been investigated in multicenter, open-label, randomized, phase II trials of up to 1 year's duration in patients with prostate cancer. Degarelix induced rapid luteinizing hormone suppression and fast, profound and sustained suppression of serum testosterone (
DrugBank Data that Cites this Article
- Drugs
- Pharmaco-metabolomics
Drug Drug Groups Metabolite Change Description Degarelix Approved Testosterone decreased Degarelix decreases the level of Testosterone in the blood Degarelix Approved Dihydrotestosterone decreased Degarelix decreases the level of Dihydrotestosterone in the blood