IMPACT, OUTCOMES & CHANGE
Radiopharmaceutical imaging and therapies are rapidly improving the efficacy of diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer, as well as its prognosis. New research has confirmed the accuracy of the novel European Association of Urology risk classification system, which groups patients with prostate cancer on the basis of their risk of recurrence after first-line therapy (prostate surgery or radiation). The first radiopharmaceutical drug (68GA-PSMA-11) for PET imaging of PSMA-positive prostate cancer was approved on December 1, 2020, almost 10 years after its discovery. On March 23, 2022, the Food and Drug Administration approved a new, game-changing nuclear medicine treatment for mCRPC shown to reduce the risk of death by 38% and the risk of progression by 60%³.
As nuclear medicine advances, initial diagnostic imaging may allow us to formulate a full treatment course for prostate cancer, with more accurate prediction of suspected future recurrences. It is essential that PSMA PET be accurate to improve stratification and potential outcomes in both low-risk and high-risk patients. Investing in research and new treatments means prostate cancer will be detected earlier, and more effective therapies can provide a better prognosis.