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The results of the clinical trial was presented at the Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco last week.

According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) website, "although the benefit was modest (several months), there currently are no effective treatments for patients with this form of the disease, called metastatic castration-resistant, or hormone-refractory, prostate cancer."

Dr. Nicholas Vogelzang said on a press briefing on March 3 ahead of the symposium that "this is the first positive study of it's kind." Cabazitaxel should clearly be considered now as an alternative for men in whom standard chemotherapy has failed, he added. Vogelzang is the chair and medical director of the Developmental Therapeutics Committee of the company US Oncology.

Prostate cancer is a type of cancer forming in the male prostate gland. The condition usually affects older men aged 65 and above. For men who do not respond to standard treatment, such as hormone replacement therapy or those whose cancer cells have spread, chemotherapy may be recommended.

Sanofi-Aventis is the manufacturer of cabazitaxel and the company is expected to seek FDA approval of the experimental drug as a second-line treatment. It would be the first FDA-approved agent for this indication.

Further information about this story can be found at the NCI website.

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