LAST WEEK TODAY!

A summary of what was published on ProstateWarriors.com during the past week

This is my first attempt at a newsletter, so please be kind! I’ll aim to produce a summary newsletter every week to keep you up-to-date on the latest discoveries. Sometimes, due to work or other commitments, I might not be able to keep up weekly, but I promise to try my best.

We also have a podcast (an attempt!), in case you’d prefer to listen to the latest scientific updates instead of reading them, you will find the link at the bottom of the page. But enough chit-chat—let’s dive into what I’ve uncovered this week!

Clinical Research

• A Phase 3 clinical trial, ProstACT GLOBAL, is investigating the use of 177Lu-DOTA-rosopatamab (TLX591), a radio antibody-drug conjugate (rADC), to treat advanced prostate cancer. The trial is studying the treatment’s impact on overall survival, progression-free survival, adverse effects, and quality of life. The trial is based on promising results from previous Phase 1 and 2 studies.
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• The MEDCARE trial, a prospective, single-arm, non-randomized phase 2 trial, studied a new approach to treating oligoprogressive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). Instead of immediately using next-line systemic treatment (NEST), researchers used progression-directed therapy (PDT), which involves targeting radiotherapy at specific lesions while the patient continues their ongoing systemic therapy. The study found that PDT delayed the need for NEST for a median of 17 months and was associated with low toxicity.
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• A phase 2 clinical trial is investigating the effects of white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) supplements on prostate cancer. The study found that the supplements reduced the number of myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs), which weaken the immune system and allow cancer to spread. The researchers observed similar results in preclinical mouse models.
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• A clinical trial investigated the use of pembrolizumab, an immunotherapy drug, in combination with standard chemotherapy to treat small cell bladder cancer and small cell/neuroendocrine prostate cancer. The results showed that 43% of patients treated with the combination therapy experienced either partial or complete regression of their disease. For patients with small cell/neuroendocrine prostate cancer, the median survival time was 27 months, which is significantly longer than the historical average of 7 to 9 months. The combination treatment was well-tolerated.

Observational Research

• A study analyzed real-world data on survival outcomes in patients with metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC) treated with either apalutamide or abiraterone acetate monotherapy. The data came from the Flatiron Metastatic Prostate Cancer Core Registry, which covers a large population of patients treated in community oncology practices. The study found that a higher proportion of patients treated with apalutamide survived for 24 months compared to those treated with abiraterone acetate.

Preclinical Research

• A 2020 study published in the Journal of Physiology explored the effects of whole-body electromyostimulation (WB-EMS) on the growth and survival of cancer cells in patients with advanced prostate or colorectal cancer. The study found that serum collected from patients after a 12-week WB-EMS training program inhibited the growth and promoted the death of human prostate and colon cancer cells in vitro. Additional experiments using electric pulse stimulation (EPS) on cultured human skeletal muscle cells showed similar results, suggesting that muscle stimulation might play a role in inhibiting cancer cell growth.
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• Researchers at Georgia Tech developed AF2Complex, an AI-powered tool that uses deep learning to predict which antibodies can bind to specific antigens. The tool builds on the success of AlphaFold, a deep-learning model that predicts protein structures. AF2Complex could potentially be used to accelerate drug development, develop personalized therapies, and improve the effectiveness of immunotherapies for cancer.
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• CLSP-1025 is a T cell engager (TCE) that targets the�p53^R175H mutation, which is prevalent in various hard-to-treat solid tumors, including prostate cancer. The TCE is designed to selectively bind to the p53R^175H mutant peptide and activate the immune system to attack tumor cells.
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• Onchilles Pharma is developing pan-cancer therapeutics that target the ELANE pathway, a recently discovered innate immune mechanism that selectively triggers immunogenic cell death in cancer cells. Preclinical data for their systemically delivered NEU-002 program suggests that it can selectively kill cancer cells and induce durable responses. While prostate cancer is a potential candidate for this treatment, phase 1 trials will not include prostate cancer.
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• Research presented at the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) 39th Annual Meeting suggests that the “cold” nature of prostate cancer, which has traditionally made it resistant to immunotherapy, might offer valuable insights into new immunotherapy strategies. A study led by Dr. Lawrence Fong found that SPP1+ myeloid cells, specifically macrophages, contribute to immunotherapy resistance in mCRPC. These cells suppress the immune response within the tumor microenvironment by increasing adenosine signaling through the adenosine 2A receptor. Corvus Pharmaceuticals has developed ciforadenant, a drug that blocks the adenosine 2A receptor, and early clinical trial data suggests that it may enhance the effectiveness of anti-PD1 therapy in mCRPC patients.

And…that’s all folks! For today at least!
Ah, before I forget, here is my first attempt at PODCASTING, of course none of the voices is mine!
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