[Combination therapy for metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer: What? When? For whom?]

Novel combination therapies are currently the standard systemic treatment for metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer. As a result, the overall survival of patients can be extended by approximately 1.5 years. The taxane docetaxel, the CYP17 inhibitor abiraterone and the second generation antiandrogen apalutamide can currently be used as a combination partner for classic androgen deprivation. While the de novo synthesis of testosterone is the rationale for abiraterone or apalutamide combination, taxanes offer a promising approach in the presence of primarily androgen-independent prostate cancer cells. Due to the increased rate of side effects caused by combination therapy, it is important to clarify in daily clinical practice which patient group benefits in particular from the respective combination therapy. Hereby, the metastatic pattern, general condition and age play an important role. While there is good evidence of the use of docetaxel or abiraterone in visceral metastasis, apalutamide offers a very wide range of uses. Ultimately, the recommendation for combination therapy is always an individual decision that needs to be discussed with the patient, considering the benefits and risks.