[Treatment of advanced prostatic cancer]

In advanced prostate cancer when the tumor has metastasized, endocrine therapy is the primary treatment alternative. Endocrine therapy was introduced 60 years ago by Huggins and Hodges in the form of castration or estrogen treatment. Unfortunately we must now concede that no decisive breakthrough in the pharmacological treatment of prostate cancer has occurred since that time. We do have several different endocrine treatment alternatives at our disposal today--all with varying advantages and drawbacks. We do, however, eagerly await new therapeutic options for the pharmacological eradication of prostatic adenocarcinoma. Today our interest is focused on methods of tailoring endocrine therapy in ways that offer the individual patient an optimal combination of quality of life and anticancer efficacy. The various opinions and research results which inform current strategies of endocrine therapy are described briefly.