CARBOPLATIN IN ADVANCED HORMONE-REFRACTORY PROSTATIC-CANCER PATIENTS

25 patients with measurable or evaluable metastatic prostate cancer, p rogressive after hormonal treatment, were treated weekly with carbopla tin 150 Mg/m2 intravenously. The weekly schedule allowed higher dose i ntensity carboplatin administration with respect to the common monthly cycles. Toxicity was manageable even in elderly patients with extensi ve bone metastases and consisted primarily of myelosuppression. 4 out of 24 evaluable patients (17%) had a partial response and 12 (50%) had disease stabilisation. The median response duration was 7 months. Pro state-specific antigen and prostatic acid phosphatase serial values sh owed a correlation with disease response in only 47 and 50% of patient s, respectively. These results suggest that carboplatin possesses a mo derate but definite activity in prostate cancer patients.