Ixabepilone in Treating Patients With Metastatic Prostate Cancer

Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as ixabepilone, work in different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. This phase II trial is studying how well ixabepilone works in treating patients with metastatic prostate cancer that has not responded to previous hormone therapy.

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: I. To determine the effect on percent with a 50% decrease in PSA response in patients with metastatic prostate cancer who have progressed on androgen ablation therapy and are classified into 1 of 3 separate categories: 1. Never received prior chemotherapy/cytotoxic therapy 2. Received prior taxane-based regimen 3. Received 2 prior cytotoxic chemotherapy regimens (including, but not limited to, prior taxane and anthracyclines) SECONDARY OBJECTIVES: I. Determine measurable disease response in patients with measurable disease treated with this drug and overall response rate. II. Determine the toxic effects of this drug in these patients. III. Determine the duration of PSA and measurable disease response in patients treated with this drug. IV. Determine the expression of p53, multidrug resistance protein, and Bcl-2 by immunohistochemistry in the primary tumors of patients treated with this drug. OUTLINE: This is a multicenter study. Patients are stratified according to prior chemotherapy (none vs 1 prior taxane-containing regimen vs 2 prior cytotoxic regimens). Patients receive ixabepilone IV over 1 hour on days 1, 8, and 15. Courses repeat every 28 days in the absence of disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Patients are followed every 3 months for 2 years and then every 6 months for 3 years.