COMPARISON OF A LONG-ACTING LHRH AGONIST AND POLYESTRADIOL PHOSPHATE IN THE TREATMENT OF ADVANCED PROSTATIC-CARCINOMA - AN OPEN PROSPECTIVE, RANDOMIZED MULTICENTER STUDY

In a prospective, randomized open study, a long-acting LHRH agonist (Z oladex((R))) was compared with polyoestradiol phosphate (Estradurin((R ))), both widely used in Finland for palliative treatment of prostatic carcinoma, as regards efficacy and side effects. Of the 236 enrolled patients, 129 were randomized to receive LHRH agonist and 107 to oestr ogen treatment. The median follow-up was 25 months. Reduction of prost atic volume was quicker and more effective in the LHRH than in the oes trogen group, and serum testosterone concentrations fell to castration level after 1 month and 1 year, respectively. In locally advanced (MO ) and histologically well or moderately differentiated tumours, LHRH a gonist therapy was considerably more effective than oestrogen as regar ds time to progression of the carcinoma, but in metastatic (M1) and hi stologically poorly differentiated tumours both methods gave similar r esults. Cardiovascular complications showed equal incidence in both gr oups. LHRH agonist therapy thus seemed to be more effective than polyo estradiol phosphate against locally advanced prostatic cancer in the d oses used.