Rigi10™ Malleable Penile Prosthesis
Also Known As
Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), androgen suppression therapy, medical castration, chemical castration, hormonal therapy, androgen blockade therapy, combined androgen blockade, complete androgen blockade, maximal androgen blockade, total androgen blockade
Definition
Hormone therapy, also called androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), is a treatment approach that aims to reduce levels of male hormones (androgens) in the body or prevent them from fueling prostate cancer cell growth.1 This therapeutic strategy works by either stopping the body from making testosterone, blocking the action of androgens throughout the body, or inhibiting androgen production in various tissues including prostate cancer cells themselves.2 Hormone therapy was established as a fundamental treatment for prostate cancer after Huggins and Hodges demonstrated the therapeutic effect of gonadal testosterone deprivation in the 1940s, firmly establishing prostate cancer as a highly androgen-dependent disease.3 While hormone therapy can make prostate cancers shrink or grow more slowly for a time, it alone doesn’t cure prostate cancer, and many cancers eventually become resistant to hormone therapy.1
Clinical Context
Hormone therapy is clinically indicated in several scenarios for prostate cancer management.1 It may be used along with radiation therapy as the first treatment for cancer that’s still in or around the prostate with a higher risk of recurrence.1,4 It can also be administered before radiation to shrink the cancer and make treatment more effective.1 For patients whose cancer remains or returns after treatment with surgery or radiation therapy, hormone therapy is often recommended, especially if the cancer has spread.1,3 Additionally, hormone therapy is the standard of care when prostate cancer has metastasized too far to be cured by surgery or radiation.1,4
Patient selection criteria include those with high-risk localized disease, biochemical recurrence after primary therapy, and metastatic disease.3,4 The treatment approach varies based on disease stage, with different combinations of hormone therapy agents used for hormone-sensitive versus castration-resistant prostate cancer.2,3 Expected outcomes include disease control and prolonged survival, though side effects must be carefully managed.1,3 Recent clinical advances have shown that combining hormone therapy with other treatments like chemotherapy or second-generation hormone agents can significantly improve survival in metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer.3,4