Brief Background/Rationale
Metastatic prostate cancer initially is very responsive to androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), with intensification using an androgen receptor pathway inhibitor (ARPI) such as abiraterone acetate, enzalutamide, apalutamide, or darolutamide with or without docetaxel to prolong sensitivity to treatment and overall survival. Over time, however, prostate cancer transitions from castrate-sensitive to castrate-resistant. Metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) has a dismal prognosis, with a median survival of under three years. There are now several agents with diverse mechanisms of action approved for use in mCRPC including cabazitaxel, sipuleucel-T, abiraterone acetate, enzalutamide, radium-223, olaparib, rucaparib, and 177Lu-PSMA-617.
Despite the treatment advances in the past decade, many cases of mCRPC either do not respond to these treatments or only respond for a short period of time. Predictive biomarkers are needed. In addition, with several options available, it is not always clear the optimal sequencing of these agents.