title: Phase II trial of weekly patupilone in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Drug resistance mechanisms can reduce response rate and duration in men with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) receiving docetaxel-based therapy. Patupilone (epothilone B), a microtubule-targeting agent, may be unaffected by some resistance mechanisms. Therefore, a phase II study assessed the patupilone safety and activity in CRPC patients with and without previous chemotherapy.
  
  
  METHODS
  CRPC patients received patupilone 2.5 mg/m(2) weekly for 3 weeks of a 4-week cycle. Patients were required to have measurable disease or prostate-specific antigen (PSA) progression (levels>20 ng/ml).
  
  
  RESULTS
  All 45 enrolled patients (median age, 69 years) were safety and response assessable. Sixty-four percent had previous chemotherapy (55% had previous taxane therapy). Patients received a median of three patupilone cycles. Patupilone was generally well tolerated. Ten (22%) patients experienced grade 3 diarrhea, six (13%) grade 3 fatigue, and one (2%) grade 3 neuropathy with no neutropenia or thrombocytopenia incidence. Six (13%) patients had >or= 50% decline in PSA (three had previous taxane therapy). No patient with measurable disease had a response. Median overall survival was 13.4 months.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The safety profile of weekly patupilone in CRPC patients compares favorably with that of other microtubule inhibitors. At the dose and schedule tested, patupilone demonstrated minimal activity in CRPC.
authors.affiliation: University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA. ahussain@som.umaryland.edu
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hussain
authors.forename: R S
authors.initials: RS
authors.lastname: DiPaola
authors.forename: A D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Baron
authors.forename: C S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Higano
authors.forename: N S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Tchekmedyian
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Johri
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D034261:Epothilones / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009919:Orchiectomy; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000601:surgery
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D034261:Epothilones; C093788:epothilone B