Public Release:  First Phase III trial of an alpha-pharmaceutical

Shows improved survival in patients with bone metastases and advanced prostate cancer

ECCO-the European CanCer Organisation

Stockholm, Sweden: Until recently, options for patients with bone metastases from advanced prostate cancer have been very limited. But now the first Phase III study of an alpha-pharmaceutical in these patients has shown that it can prolong survival significantly, according to research reported today (Saturday) at the 2011 European Multidisciplinary Cancer Congress [1].


Alpha-pharmaceuticals work by delivering minute, highly charged and targeted doses of damaging radiation to a secondary tumour (metastasis) in the bone. Radium is similar to calcium in that it sticks to bone, and particularly to where new bone is being formed, so it is a highly effective way of delivering radiation to a target. "It takes only a single alpha particle to kill a cell," Dr. Parker explained, "and collateral damage is minimised because the particles have such a tiny range - a few millionths of a metre (micrometres). So we can be sure that the damage is being done where it should be, to the metastasis, and very limited elsewhere."



Side effects with radium-223 are minor. It can cause nausea, and occasional loose bowel movements, and there is a very small effect on the bone marrow. "Although it has never been rigorously compared with chemotherapy, from observing patients in the clinic it is clear that patients tolerate it much better than they do chemotherapy," Dr. Parker said.

The researchers now intend to submit the data for regulatory approval. "I would hope that the authorities will approve radium-223 as a treatment for bone metastases in advanced prostate cancer soon," said Dr. Parker. "This is a common cancer - the second commonest cancer killer in men in the UK - and so it's a big disease burden. We urgently need effective treatment for it.



