Conditions: Prostate Cancer
Allocation: NA | Intervention model: SINGLE_GROUP
Enrollment: 32
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
The purpose of this research study is to determine if an investigational drug called Exisulind will extend the "off-treatment" period of patients receiving Intermittent Androgen Suppression (ADT).

There is evidence suggesting that alternating between periods of treatment and no treatment with androgen suppressants may delay the time to develop androgen-insensitive progression and improve overall quality of life. During intermittent androgen suppression (IAS) treatments, men receive a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonist and antiandrogen for a fixed period of time (approximately 9 months) and then enter an off-treatment period, whose length will vary, depending on the rate of rise in the patient's Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA). Once the PSA reaches an established threshold (1 ng/mL in men who have had a prostatectomy or 4 ng/ml in men with an intact prostate), androgen suppression will be re-initiated for another 9 months. These cycles of on-treatment/off-treatment will be repeated until patient no longer responds to the androgen suppression and it is clear that their cancer is progressing. It has been observed that off-treatment periods tend to become shorter with each successive cycle of androgen suppression, presumably due to the emergence of androgen-independent clones. This study proposes to look at exisulind, a pro-apoptotic drug, which may extend the off-treatment period in patients receiving IAS.

Detailed description:
A study doctor will meet with you and ask you about your medical history, examine you, and explain the study. We will draw some blood for tests (about 4-6 tablespoons), including Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA). If not already obtained, you will have a bone scan and a computed tomography scan (CT scan) to establish a baseline.

You will be receiving hormone suppression treatment with monthly injections of a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) analog such as Lupron or Zoladex and an antiandrogen such as Eulexin or Casodex as part of your standard care for prostate cancer. About 3 months before your next "off-treatment" period, you will start 1 Exisulind pill 250 mg (2 x 125mg capsules) by mouth twice a day. It is necessary for you to start the Exisulind treatment 3 months prior to your next "off-treatment" period so that the medication can build up in your system enough to be effective.

Per our standard follow-up procedures, we will ask you to have blood draws every 2 weeks for up to 12 weeks after starting Exisulind to check liver function. Thereafter you will be asked to have monthly blood draws, and return to the clinic every 3 months for a physical examination, to determine how well you are tolerating the study medication, how your cancer is responding to the treatment, and to give you more study medication. You will continue taking Exisulind during your "off-treatment" period until your PSA reaches a threshold level. PSA threshold is defined by your primary treatment. If you have had your prostate removed, the threshold is 1.0 ng/dL. If you have an intact prostate, your threshold is 4 ng/dL. Once your PSA reaches this level, you will restart your hormone suppression treatment as directed by your doctor.

Arms:
arm 1: Patients will receive intermittent dosing of hormone therapy with commercially supplied luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonist and anti-androgen to be chosen by physician per standard of care. Exisulind will be started 3 months prior to the end of the second cycle of hormone therapy. Patients will continue treatment with Exisulind beyond the completion of the second cycle of hormone therapy until they meet criteria for discontinuation.

Interventions: intervention 1: Exisulind intervention 2: luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonist intervention 3: Antiandrogen
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: Oral antineoplastic agent that induces apoptosis in cancerous cells. intervention 2: Hormonal therapy to suppress testosterone as a standard treatment for Prostate Cancer. intervention 3: Hormonal therapy used as lead in treatment with luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonist to prevent the initial rise in testosterone (testosterone flare) seen during the first dose of LHRH agonists.

Protocol document: