Denosumab Impoves Conditions of Patients Sustained Prostate Cancer

Denosumab helps to improve bone structure if it is administered intravenously once in half a year. There were no spinal breaks among the men undergoing androgen-deprivation therapy to cure for prostate cancer.

Approximately 660 thousand Americans have sustained prostate cancer due to androgen-deprivation therapy which prevents from the testosterone deprivation. Prostrate cancer develops because of the testosterone decrease. Different drugs used to reduce osteoporosis such as bisphosphonates, showed the improvement of bone structure but they could not avoid bone break risk. Denosumab prevents from the osteoclasts effect which destroys bone tissue during the bone renewal process. The studies showed the bone fractures decrease among the women with osteoporosis.

Denosumab interacts with a protein breaking bone tissue. Bone fractures are caused by RANKL suppressing body immunity. Denosumab has the properties of osteoprotegerin lowering the osteoclasts level.

During the last denosumab testing a group of people treated from nonmetastatic prostate cancer received either denosumab or a placebo each 6 months during 3 years. They were also given calcium and vitamin D supplements. After the study the bone structure among the patients was significantly improved including spine, hip and femoral bones. The bone fracture risk decreased to 38%. The bone radius and forearm bone were increased among the treated patients. This improvement was not stated when people were treated with different medications.

According to Matthew Smith, MD, PhD, the head of the Prostate Cancer Study Group “Denosumab helps to avoid serious bone fractures among the patients who sustained prostate cancer. Now we proceed with the study which evaluates if denosumab helps to decrease the penetration of prostate cancer to bone, the most common place for this disease." Smith also works at Harvard Medical School.