UPDATE: New drug slows prostate cancer and extends lives

Johnson & Johnson’s experimental prostate-cancer drug, abiraterone, not only slows the growth of prostate cancer, but also significantly increase the life expectancy of patients.

The study involved more than 1,000 men with very aggressive prostate cancer, whose prognosis was poor, with only months left to live. Of those participating, 797 were given abiraterone acetate plus the steroid prednisone, while the rest were given the steroid and a placebo. The drug, a pill, works by blocking production of hormones that fuel prostate tumors.

Life expectancy for men taking abiraterone increased by 36% from a midpoint of 10.9 to 14.8 months while the risk of death among men taking the drug dropped by 35%.

The research has crucial implications because presently men with this aggressive type of prostate cancer currently have very limited treatment options and a poor prognosis.

Johnson & Johnson plans to file for new-drug approval in the U.S. and Europe by year-end, raising prospects that the drug could be on the market next year.

Positive final results of this trial were expected on August 20, 2010, when the trial was unblinded after a pre-specified interim analysis, after which all patients in the placebo arm were allowed to cross over to receive abiraterone.

Side effects associated abiraterone included fluid retention and hypokalemia, a condition characterized by low levels of potassium in the blood.