Less-risky prostate cancer therapy offered

Data shows lower cardiovascular risk with Firmagon, a hormonal therapy for prostate cancer, compared with other prostate treatments, European researchers say. Bertrand Tombal of Universite Catholique de Louvain in Brussels and Kurt Miller of the Benjamin Franklin Medical Center in Berlin said the data suggested a significantly lower risk of cardiovascular events with Firmagon, or degarelix, compared with commonly prescribed luteinising hormone-releasing hormone agonists -- which causes testosterone levels to fall in men. In men with existing cardiovascular disease, there was more than 50 percent less chance of a subsequent cardiovascular event -- heart attack or stroke -- or death with Firmagon when compared with men receiving luteinising hormone-releasing hormone agonists. The data involved 2,328 patients in different countries pooled for study analysis. The pooled analysis also showed men treated with Firmagon had significantly higher overall survival and improved disease control -- fewer fractures and a lower incidence of renal or urinary tract adverse events when compared with luteinising hormone-releasing hormone agonists. The findings are being presented at the European Association of Urology in Milan, Italy.