Tumor cells evolve ways to resist chemotherapy. In some cases they develop mechanisms for actually expelling the drugs out of the cells before the drug can damage the cell. Every patient is different. Some patients have tumors that are very sensitive to chemo and they get a great response. Many patients don't respond at all to chemo.
Cancer is a disease of mutated DNA. There are thousands of different ways that mutations in different genes can cause cells to start replicating out of control, or to start spreading to places where they shouldn't be (i.e., metastases.) Because of that, the response to drugs differs quite a bit for different patients.
Patients who do respond well to chemo don't usually respond for long. Typical responses in prostate cancer patients for the existing chemotherapies may last for months or for a small number of years. New mutations usually occur at a much higher rate in tumor cells than in healthy cells, and a mutation that confers survival in the face of chemotherapy will be naturally selected and evolve to become the dominant type of cell in one's tumors.
In your case, I suggest looking at clinical trials for drugs that are neither hormone based, like Zytiga, nor chemotherapy based, like docetaxel and Jevtana. If you can get into a Keytruda or similar immunotherapy trial, some other drugs, that may offer some hope. There are also new and different drugs that are aimed at re-sensitizing cells to ADT or chemo, or at targeting tumor cells with much higher doses of chemo than would be safe with drugs that did not seek out tumor cells for specific attack.
You might look for clinical trials websites and for cancer research hospitals in your country. In England, the Royal Marsden is a famous center for new research.
I just got the PSA results for the last 30 days. 136, jumped from 96. Never before and for the past 2 years. My Doctor said before I shouldn't worry over numbers as far as no side effects???
It looks to me like the Jevtana has failed and will give you no more benefit. Your cancer appears to be progressing. In my non-expert opinion, you've exhausted the most common and well proven options and you might want to try the newer treatments like immunotherapy - possibly in a clinical trial.
I think a good source for information is the U.S. National Cancer Institute. Here is their patient oriented starting page for prostate cancer where you can find information about the treatments, current research, and clinical trials:
If you click the link to the "health professional" page just above the "Overview" it will take you to more detailed and comprehensive, but more technical, explanations. The prognosis information on the health professional pages gives more information about typical outcomes than the patient version does.
If you want to investigate clinical trials and are in the UK, here are some pages:
If you search for (clinical trials europe) you can find trials in European countries. I think most trials are country or region specific but some are run across multiple countries.
Thank you AlanMeyer for your findings. I am a Lebanese 62 years of age. I will discuss my issue with my doctor. As I mentioned before reference symptoms relating to my prostate cancer Is it possible that they are dorment. On the other hand every time and before my chemotherapy a blood test is taking and based on the results chemotherapy is given. Never before had a session postponed. I also take Prednisone tablets every day. I also have diabetes but under control cause I take insulin. As for clinical trial l don't think we have it here in Lebanon. I got the results of my PSA today and physiologically I feeling different.
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Can a MRI, Cat Scan or X-ray, reveal a new met? Which one is better?
Hi we are new to this site
Any suggestion for treatment with P53 is much appreciated?
