Treatment with abiraterone in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer patients progressing after docetaxel: a retrospective study.

The aim of this study was to evaluate abiraterone's efficacy in Italian patients affected with metastatic prostate cancer progressing after treatment with docetaxel. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 60 patients. Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) reduction in serum was the primary endpoint for evaluating the efficacy of abiraterone in combination with prednisone treatment, whereas reduced pain, safety, progression-free survival, response rate, and overall survival (OS) were secondary endpoints. A significant correlation was noticed between PSA response and OS. Further, the Index Bravais-Pearson (r) correlation allowed us to observe a significant negative interdependence between PSA response and reduction in pain of 0.57 (95% confidence interval: -0.30 to 0.80) (P=0.005). Meanwhile, regression analysis revealed that PSA levels are predictive of OS. There was a positive correlation with OS, which showed a value of R to 0.50 with a slope of 1.44 (P=0.0021). Abiraterone is a well-tolerated and effective treatment modality for patients affected with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. The drug has a better tolerability profile, gives significant pain relief, and increases the survival rate.