When dealing with metastatic prostate cancer, a stage where prostate cancer cells have spread beyond the prostate gland to bones, lymph nodes, or other organs. Also known as advanced prostate cancer, it requires a different treatment approach than localized disease.
One of the most frequent targets is the bone, resulting in bone metastases, cancer spread to the skeleton that often triggers pain and fractures. These lesions raise the risk of fractures, so doctors often add bone‑strengthening agents and schedule regular imaging.
Standard systemic control begins with androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), a regimen that reduces testosterone to slow tumor growth. ADT can be combined with newer hormone‑blocking drugs, chemotherapy, or immunotherapy depending on how aggressive the disease is.
Monitoring treatment response leans heavily on PSA testing, a blood test that measures prostate‑specific antigen levels to gauge cancer activity. Rising PSA after ADT often signals the need for additional therapies such as chemotherapy or targeted agents.
Understanding metastatic prostate cancer helps you see how each component fits. The spread to bone defines many symptoms, while ADT tackles the hormone driver, and PSA values tell you whether the plan is working. Clinical trials keep adding options—like PARP inhibitors for patients with DNA repair gene mutations—so staying aware of the latest data can change outcomes.
Patients also face decisions about radiation therapy to shrink painful bone lesions, or about clinical trials that test novel immunotherapies. Discussing goals of care early makes it easier to match treatment intensity with personal preferences and overall health.
In practice, a multidisciplinary team—urologists, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, and palliative care specialists—collaborates to address the disease from every angle. This teamwork mirrors the semantic connections we just outlined: metastatic prostate cancer encompasses bone metastases; effective management requires androgen deprivation therapy; PSA testing influences treatment decisions; and emerging therapies expand the toolbox.
Below you’ll find a curated set of articles that dive deeper into each of these areas. Whether you’re looking for practical travel tips for heart conditions, drug comparison guides, or the latest on cancer immunotherapy, the collection is organized to give you quick access to the information you need.
Explore how abiraterone reshapes treatment for metastatic prostate cancer, covering its mechanism, key trials, guidelines, side‑effects and emerging combos.