Characterizations of Clinical and Therapeutic Histories for Men With Prostate Cancer-Specific Mortality

Abstract Background Careful descriptions of men with prostate cancer (PCa)-specific mortality are scant in nontrial settings. The present retrospective review describes the clinical characteristics, timelines, and treatment histories from initial presentation to death in a cohort of men with metastatic, castrate-resistant PCa (mCRPC). Unique to the present study is the unequivocal attribution of PCa death by a single experienced clinician. Patients and Methods A total of 119 patients who had been treated at Tulane Cancer Center and had died of mCRPC from 2008 to 2015 were studied through a retrospective review of the medical records. Results The median age at diagnosis was 65 years (range, 40-85 years), and 34.4% of the patients presented with metastatic disease (stage M1). Of these patients, 56% had received definitive primary therapy, all had received androgen-deprivation therapy, and 52% had received docetaxel. The patients had received a median of 7 (1-14) systemic therapies before death. Most were secondary hormonal manipulations after the diagnosis of mCRPC (median, 4; range, 0-9). The median survival was 69 months (range, 5-270 months) after diagnosis, and the median age at death was 73 years (range, 47-95 years). The presence of metastases at diagnosis was a significant predictor of early death (hazard ratio, 4.33; P P P P  = .002). Conclusion The present retrospective analysis provides initial views clarifying the clinical characteristics of men dying of mCRPC and the therapies they received before death. Additional data are needed in multi-institutional settings to confirm these findings.