Activity of TroVax® Alone vs. TroVax® Plus GM-CSF in Patients With Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men. Hormonal ablation, in the form of medical or surgical castration is the cornerstone of management for metastatic prostate cancer however, treatment options for a patient in whom androgen ablation fails are limited. Second-line hormonal agents are generally associated with low response rates and no documented survival benefit. Historically, chemotherapy was not considered to have significant activity in hormone refractory prostate cancer (HRPCa). This view has changed within the past 10 years, partly because of the availability of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) measurements to monitor tumor burden. Although it seems that chemotherapy, either as a single agent or combination of agents may lead to clinical responses, reduction in PSA measurements, pain control, or improved quality of life, no benefit in overall survival has been definitively proven. The current standard of care for the treatment of metastatic prostate cancer is hormone therapy (androgen blockade).3,4 When this strategy is no longer effective, few good treatment options are left. For this reason, prostate cancer research has aimed to identify new therapeutic modalities to increase the impact of these parameters as well as prolong patient survival. A total of 24 men with prostate cancer ranging from non-metastatic rising PSA only disease to bony metastatic disease will be enrolled in the study. All patients will have failed androgen treatment and at least one prior taxane chemotherapy or have refused chemotherapy. Out of the 24 patients, 12 patients will be treated using TroVax® and 12 will be treated using TroVax® plus GM-CSF.