Objective:To investigate the impact of skeletalrelated events on survival in patients with metastatic prostate cancer prescribed long-term androgen deprivation therapy.Methods: This historical cohort study was conducted in two hospitals in Hong Kong. Patients who were diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer and prescribed androgen deprivation therapy between January 2006 and December 2011 were included. Details of skeletal-related events and mortality were examined.
Results:The median follow-up was 28 (range, 1-97) months. Of 119 patients, 52 (43.7%) developed skeletal-related events throughout the study, and the majority received bone irradiation for pain control. The median actuarial overall survival and cancer-specific survival for patients with skeletalrelated events were significantly shorter than those without skeletal-related events (23 vs 48 months, P=0.003 and 26 vs 97 months, P<0.001, respectively). Multivariate analysis revealed that the adjusted hazard ratio of presence of skeletal-related events on overall and cancer-specific survival was 2.73 (95% confidence interval, 1.46-5.10; P=0.002) and 3.92 (95% confidence interval, 1.87-8.23; P<0.001), respectively. A prostate-specific antigen nadir of >4 ng/mL was an independent poor prognostic factor for overall and cancer-specific survival after development of skeletal-related events (hazard ratio=10.42; 95% confidence interval, 2.10-51.66 and
Impact of skeletal-related events on survival in patients with metastatic prostate cancer prescribed androgen deprivation therapy IntroductionProstate cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed in men in developed countries. In the United States, there were 240 890 estimated new cases in 2011, accounting for 29% of all new cancers in men and over 33 000 deaths. 1 According to the Hong Kong Cancer Registry in 2012, prostate cancer was the third most common cancer in men. 2 New knowledge added by this study • Skeletal-related events (SREs) in patients with metastatic prostate cancer significantly worsen their prognosis.• The prevalence of SREs in patients with metastatic prostate cancer is high. Implications for clinical practice or policy • Medications such as bisphosphonate therapy and receptor activator for nuclear factor κB ligand inhibitor should be considered to prevent SREs in patients with metastatic prostate cancer.Hong Kong Med J 2016;22:106-15