A chemotherapy-loaded implant, smaller than a grain of rice, is being developed to sit directly inside a prostate tumour and release docetaxel over weeks or months. Prostate cancer affects around 50,000 men in the UK each year, and roughly 12,000 die from it. Current treatments for locally advanced disease—hormone therapy, surgery, or radiotherapy—carry significant side effects. Chemotherapy drugs like docetaxel work well against metastatic prostate cancer but cannot penetrate the prostate tissue itself when given orally or by injection. This implant, called ChemoSeed, bypasses that barrier by delivering the drug directly into the tumour, potentially killing cancer cells while sparing the rest of the body from toxic side effects. If the approach works, it could offer men with locally advanced prostate cancer a treatment that avoids the onerous side effects of radiotherapy and surgery. The technology is already being developed for brain tumours and is due to enter clinical trials in 2025. For prostate cancer, the plan is to first test safety in up to 10 patients, then assess whether the implant can reduce the 35% of locally advanced tumours that currently metastasise within two years. Success could eventually expand the treatment to all grades of prostate cancer.
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Chemotherapeutic drugs (docetaxel) are good to treat metastatic prostate cancer but they do not have any effect inside the prostate due to its non-lipophilic characteristic. By administering the drugs into the prostate we can possibly cure the disease and avoid onerous side effects of radiotherapy and surgery. This proposal is for the application of ChemoSeed, an implantable drug delivery technology designed for the sustained delivery of chemotherapy directly into cancer tissue thereby improving clinical performance. The technology is currently in development for the treatment of high grade glioma (brain tumour) and is due to enter clinical trials in 2025\. ChemoSeed is showing great promise in its ability to deliver therapeutic levels of drug to solid tumours with minimal systemic toxicity compared with oral or parenteral administration. Prostate cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in men. The cancer typically progresses slowly and early detection plays a crucial role in determining the prognosis and treatment options. In UK Prostate cancer affects some 50,000 men each year and around 12,000 die from the disease The prognosis depends on various factors, including the stage of the disease, the aggressiveness of the cancer cells (Gleason score), the presence of metastasis, and the individual's overall health. Prostate cancer has a high survival rate, with the five-year relative survival rate approaching 100% for localized or regional-stage cancer. However, the prognosis can vary for advanced or metastatic cases. Prostate cancer is categorised in 3 grades; localised, locally advanced and advanced. Treatment may or may not be advised for localised disease however for locally advanced disease the main options include hormone therapy, surgery and radiotherapy or brachytherapy. In advanced prostate cancer where the cancer has metastasised chemotherapy (docetaxel) may be used alongside hormone therapy. It is proposed that an implant is formulated and developed for prostate cancer incorporating docetaxel. Following formulation development, the ChemoSeed implants will enter preclinical studies before being tested in a safety study in up to 10 patients. Success at this stage would be followed by an early assessment of efficacy on the tumour margin of locally advanced prostate cancer tumours. At this stage 35% of tumours are likely to metastasise in up to 2 years. Should the proportion progressing be reduced significantly, the treatment could then be expanded for the additional grades of prostate cancer.
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