Duke physicians and scientists are continually investigating ways to improve outcomes for men with prostate cancer and to discover novel therapies to better treat prostate cancer.

Some highlights:

• Duke was one of the first sites in the country to offer men a novel non-surgical therapy for early stage prostate cancer: high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU).
• Ongoing clinical trials at the Duke Prostate Center (DPC) are being used to test a new class of medications called  mTOR inhibitors. One of these agents was recently FDA-approved for kidney cancer treatment, and investigators at the DPC are researching the use of these medications for men with prostate cancer.
• DPC researchers have developed a nomogram, which is a predictive tool for men with hormone-refractory prostate cancer, to estimate the prognosis of men with advanced prostate cancer.
• Duke’s renovated radiation oncology department offers state-of-the-art treatments for prostate cancer patients, including intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and prostate brachytherapy.
• DPC researchers piloted flaxseed in earlier studies, finding reductions in PSA and proliferation in prostate tissues. They have now conducted a multi-center randomized trial of flaxseed, low-fat diet, the combination, or a usual diet in men with prostate cancer prior to surgery. While PSA values did not differ across study arms, the trial confirmed the biologic activity of flaxseed and opened the possibility of examining flaxseed in a larger prostate cancer prevention trial.
• DPC geneticists have developed genomic signatures to predict the response to chemotherapy in prostate cancer.  By validating these tests in men with advanced prostate cancer, they hope to identify men prior to treatment who have the most to gain with chemotherapy and other therapies.
• DPC researchers are working to tailor anti-cancer treatments to individuals based on the characteristics of their cancer by studying the molecular characterization of certain prostate cancer tumors to determine what makes some tumors more susceptible to specifically targeted therapy.
• DPC researchers are investigating the use of shorter but more intense time periods of radiation treatment for men with low-risk disease.
• A clinical trial is underway to determine the efficacy of administering chemotherapy after radiation for men at high risk of recurrence after radiation and hormonal therapy.
• DPC researchers have designed and developed a Longitudinal Prostate Cancer Outcomes database. Analyzing data from this database, a set of decision making tools are being developed to help Duke clinicians define prognostic variables associated with the outcome of patients in different clinical scenarios and optimize clinical interventions.
• The DPC joined the Department of Defense Prostate Cancer Consortium and became one of 10 academic medical centers nationwide selected to participate in a cooperative group dedicated to advancing new therapies and improving treatment outcomes in men with prostate cancer.