Medical treatment for biochemical relapse after radiotherapy

This article's purpose was to review the medical data justifying the use of a medical treatment for biochemical relapse after external beam radiotherapy. The MEDLINE database was searched to identify relevant information with the following medical subject headings: "prostate cancer", "radiotherapy" and "biochemical relapse". Prognostic factors affecting the overall survival of patients with a biochemical relapse after external beam radiotherapy have been identified: short prostate specific antigen (PSA)-doubling time (< 12 months), high PSA value (> 10 ng/mL) and short interval between treatment and biochemical relapse (< 18 months). If a second local treatment is not feasible, timing to initiate a salvage medical treatment is not defined. Particularly, randomized trials did not demonstrate a significant benefit of an early initiation of androgen deprivation treatment. Some retrospective studies suggest that an early androgen deprivation is justified if poor prognostic factors are found. However, if an androgen deprivation treatment is prescribed, intermittent schedule is non-inferior to a continuous administration and seems to offer a better quality of life. Many non-hormonal treatments have also been evaluated in this setting: only 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors could be proposed in some specific situations. In conclusion, the judicious use of a medical treatment for biochemical relapse is still debated. Given the natural history of this clinical situation, a simple surveillance is justified in many cases.