Correlation of [68Ga]Ga-PSMA PET/CT response and PSA decline in first-line enzalutamide for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer patients

Eur J Nucl Med Mol Imaging. 2024 Dec;52(1):326-334. doi: 10.1007/s00259-024-06887-4. Epub 2024 Aug 29.

Abstract

Purpose: to assess the utility of response monitoring to enzalutamide by using [68Ga]Ga-PSMA PET in mCRPC patients treated with enzalutamide as first-line therapy.

Methods: patients underwent [68Ga]Ga-PSMA PET less than 8 weeks before and 3 months after starting enzalutamide. On the basis of EAU/EANM criteria, patients were categorized as PSMA responders (PET-R) or PSMA non-responders (PET-NR), whilst, based on PSA, they were classified as biochemical responders (PSA-R) or non-responders (PSA-NR). Survival analysis was performed using the Cox regression hazard model and the Kaplan-Meier method.

Results: 69 patients were considered fully evaluable. We observed 47.8% of concordance between [68Ga]Ga-PSMA PET and PSA monitoring at 3 months after starting enzalutamide. For discordant cases, the PSA reduction has a weak impact on PFS and a significant impact on OS in PET-NR patients, whilst this change has no impact either for PFS and OS in PET-R ones.

Conclusions: [68Ga]Ga-PSMA PET could be a useful imaging tool for monitoring response to enzalutamide in mCRPC patients, being more informative than PSA in this setting, and possibly better guiding clinicians in therapeutic decisions.

Keywords: Enzalutamide; Monitoring response.; PSMA PET; Prostate cancer.

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Benzamides*
  • Edetic Acid* / analogs & derivatives
  • Gallium Isotopes*
  • Gallium Radioisotopes*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Neoplasm Metastasis*
  • Nitriles* / therapeutic use
  • Oligopeptides / therapeutic use
  • Phenylthiohydantoin* / analogs & derivatives
  • Phenylthiohydantoin* / therapeutic use
  • Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography*
  • Prostate-Specific Antigen* / blood
  • Prostatic Neoplasms, Castration-Resistant* / diagnostic imaging
  • Prostatic Neoplasms, Castration-Resistant* / drug therapy
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Treatment Outcome

Substances

  • Benzamides
  • Nitriles
  • Phenylthiohydantoin
  • Gallium Radioisotopes
  • enzalutamide
  • Gallium Isotopes
  • Prostate-Specific Antigen
  • gallium 68 PSMA-11
  • Edetic Acid
  • Oligopeptides