A new treatment called Ipilumumab may soon be approved for people with advanced prostate cancer, according to an international study.
Previous research has shown that prostate cancer patients who are resistant to conventional treatments such as hormones and chemotherapy may benefit from the immunotherapeutic agent Ipilumumab. In the new study, scientists from the MedUni Vienna, examined whether the immunotherapeutic agent could treat prostate cancer in its advanced stages.
The results of the study, published in the journal The Lancet Oncology, were successful in that the Ipilumumab antibodies essentially disabled “inhibitors” and helped boost the body’s immune system. However, the researchers also noted that Ipilumumab will be a suitable treatment only for people with advanced prostate cancer who are in good general health. They explained that since the newly-boosted immune system can also attack the body’s own tissues, people who are in poor health overall may experience negative side effects.
Researchers are now conducting a follow-up study on patients with advanced prostate cancer who are in good overall health, which they expect to be completed in 2015.
Source: health central