Sanofi: Study Shows Jevtana Could Be Used in Prostate Cancer When Hormone Therapy Fails

By Carlo Martuscelli

Sanofi SA (SAN.FR) said Monday that results from a study of its drug Jevtana for the treatment of prostate cancer were positive, offering an alternative when hormone therapy fails.

The French pharmaceutical company said data from the phase 3 Card study showed Jevtana was effective with prostate cancer patients who had previously been treated.

The company said that based on radiographic scans, the amount of time before the disease progressed was more than double on average for patients being treated with Jevtana than with other therapies.

Progression free survival--a measure of how long it takes a disease to worsen--increased to a median of 8 months versus 3.7 months for patients given hormone therapies abiraterone or enzalutamide.

The drug also was successful in improving patients' pain response, the company said.

Ronald de Wit, the study investigator, told Dow Jones that Jevtana could change how prostate cancer patients who don't respond to hormone therapy are treated.

At the moment, patients who fail abiraterone therapy are given enzalutamide and vice versa, he said. However, if one doesn't work it's unlikely that the alternative agent is effective, Dr. De Wit said.

Jevtana holds promise for these patients, he said.

Write to Carlo Martuscelli at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 30, 2019 10:44 ET (14:44 GMT)

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