Dr. Saad on Results of Radium-223 Trial in Prostate Cancer

Fred Saad, MD, professor and chief of Urology, director of Genitourinary Oncology at the University of Montreal Hospital Centers, discusses results of a trial that investigated early use of radium-223 dichloride (Xofigo) in patients with asymptomatic metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

According to Saad, radium-223 should be started very soon after first-line treatment—not when the patient becomes symptomatic. The drug proved to delay symptomatic progression, specifically a significant decrease in symptomatic skeletal events.

Asymptomatic patients were shown to have better overall survival compared with symptomatic patients. This hindrance of symptoms allowed most patients to undergo all 6 cycles of treatment, suggesting that earlier use of radium-223 in the disease course could lead to better outcomes overall.