Primary intermittent androgen deprivation as initial therapy for men with newly diagnosed prostate cancer.

Background: The purpose of this study was to describe the long-term incidence of cancer progression and mortality in men with localized prostate cancer treated with primary androgen deprivation (AD).

Methods: A retrospective chart review, from a medical oncology practice specializing in prostate cancer, was conducted of 73 men eligible for surgery or radiation treated with induction AD. Entry criteria consisted of a minimum of 9 months of induction AD, treatment initiation before 1999, clinical stage < T3, and outcome defined as the incidence of delayed local therapy, cancer progression, cancer mortality, and mortality from other causes.

Results: Median follow-up was 12 years. Fifteen men were at low risk, 38 were at intermediate risk, and 20 were at high risk. Three men (4%) experienced metastatic disease and died of prostate cancer after 3.5, 7.7, and 11 years, respectively. Two men were in the intermediate-risk category and 1 was high risk. Nineteen men (26%) died of non-prostate cancer causes. None had metastatic disease at the time of death. Of the remaining 51 survivors, none has experienced bone metastasis. Twenty-one men (29%) required no further therapy after the first induction course of AD. Twenty-four men (33%) maintained a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level < 5.0 ng/mL with 2 to 5 cycles of intermittent AD. Twenty-eight men (38%) underwent delayed local therapy after a median of 5.5 years. Median follow-up after local therapy was 6.2 years. Three of these men experienced subsequent rising PSA levels but none has progressed to bone metastasis. Sixteen of 20 men (80%) in the high-risk category but only 12 of 53 men (23%) in the low- and intermediate-risk categories had delayed local therapy.

Conclusions: Primary intermittent AD is feasible for men with localized prostate cancer. Men who are younger and men with high-risk disease undergo delayed local therapy more frequently.