Cabazitaxel for Metastatic Castrate-Resistant Prostate Cancer: A Case Presentation

Introduction: Although cabazitaxel was proven efficacious by a large Phase III trial and was approved for second-line treatment of metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer, case reports describing its efficacy and safety are lacking in the literature. More data is needed describing castrate-resistant prostate cancer cases that progress with 1st line therapy. Case Presentation: A 78-year old Hispanic male presented to the clinic in July 2011 with a 3-month history of worsening left knee pain, generalized fatigue, and a 5.4 kilogram weight loss. His past medical history was significant for metastatic prostate cancer and his laboratory results were notable for an alkaline phosphatase of 221U/L, a prostate specific antigen of 837.7ng/ml, and a creatinine of 1.94. Discussion: Metastatic prostate cancer results from the combination of lymphatic, blood, or contiguous local spread. Cabazitaxel is a novel semi-synthetic tubulin binding taxane that uses a precursor molecule extracted from yew tree needles. In the phase III TROPIC study, CRPC patients previously taking docetaxel had a significant increase in overall survival with cabazitaxel compared with mitoxantrone (15.1 vs. 12.7 months, p<0.001). Conclusion: Cabazitaxel appears to be safe chemotherapeutic agent and has moved to the forefront in our armamentarium for the treatment in castrate-resistant prostate cancer.