Experts are excited by groundbreaking new research which could significantly extend the life expectancy of men battling prostate cancer.

 

According to new research, an approach combining two pre-existing prostate cancer therapies could increase life expectancy by a staggering 37 per cent, for men battling high-risk prostate cancer.

 

Many patients are currently receiving hormone therapy for the illness, while others are placed on a course of Abiratone. This study, however - conducted by experts in the UK and Switzerland - suggests that combining the two can have a much more powerful impact and positive outcome.

 

For the study, researchers gathered together a group of 2,000 men and administered two different treatments. One section of the group received standard hormone therapy, while the other received a combination of this and the Abiratone treatment.

 

The results were extremely interesting. When experts compared the two groups, they found that the combination treatment prolonged life expectancy by over a third.

 

 

The combination treatment had an even great effect, however. It also cut the risk of relapse by a whopping 70 per cent, and halved the risk of developing serious bone complications.

 

The team, presenting their findings to the American Society of Clinical Oncology, did however present one downside: those put on the combination treatment appeared to suffer greater side-effects, specifically to the liver and heart.

 

Presenting the findings, lead author of the study Nicholas James couldn't help but share his excitement that a new and more effective treatment for prostate cancer could be on the horizon.

 

"Based on the magnitude of clinical benefit, we believe the upfront care for patients newly diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer should be changed, " he said.

 

"These are the most powerful results I've seen from a prostate cancer trial," he added. "It's a once in a career feeling. This is one of the biggest reductions in death I've seen in any clinical trial for adult cancers."

 

 

The news comes just a day after another group of scientists announced a massive breakthrough in the treatment of ovarian cancer.

 

According to findings presented yesterday, seven women who participated in a drug trial at London's Royal Marsden Hospital were told that their tumours had shrunk dramatically, after taking a new drug called ONX-801.

 

Lead author of the study, Dr Udai Banerji, said: "This...should add upward of six months to patients' lives with minimal side-effects in extremely late-phase ovarian cancer.

 

"This is much more than anything achieved in the last 10 years."

 

These new findings certainly instil hope for patients all over the world. Let's hope this research will prove effective going forward.

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