Battling Stage Four Prostate Cancer
- Duran Duran’s Andy Taylor is battling advanced prostate cancer after being diagnosed at age 56. Treatment has allowed him to “rock on” he said in a letter, but he values every day he has, he says in a new interview.
- Prostate cancer treatments include surgery, hormone therapy, radiation, and chemotherapy.
- PSA tests are the screening method used to screen for prostate cancer. These tests look for PSA in the bloodstream, which could indicate the presence of prostate cancer.
- People who have a family history of prostate cancer – or other cancers – should begin screening for prostate cancer earlier than the average person. The current recommendation is to begin screening at age 50 if you have an average risk of prostate cancer.
Taylor, 61, says in an interview with U.K. TV, how precious his time is. She shares, reports Yahoo!, “Every minute is like an hour, every day is like a week. You really want to get the most out of life…”
Read MoreTaylor’s Battle with Prostate Cancer
The musician shared his diagnosis given his absence from Duran Duran’s Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony in Los Angeles in November 2022.
His bandmates read a letter he’d written. In it, Taylor wrote:
“Just over four years ago, I was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic prostate cancer.”
He shared, “Many families have experienced the slow burn of this disease and of course we are no different; so I speak from the perspective of a family man but with profound humility to the band, the greatest fans a group could have and this exceptional accolade.”
Taylor shared that his treatment had allowed him “until very recently” to “rock on” and live life somewhat normally. “Although my current condition is not immediately life-threatening, there is no cure,” he wrote. “Recently, I was doing OK after some very sophisticated life-extending treatment, that was until a week or so ago when I suffered a setback, and despite the exceptional efforts of my team, I had to be honest in that both physically and mentally, I would be pushing my boundaries.”
Prostate cancer treatments include surgery, hormone therapy, radiation, and chemotherapy. Treatment paths depend upon the stage of the cancer at the time of diagnosis.
Symptoms of the disease are inconsistent and can be hard to determine. “Prostate cancer is a very odd disease in that it doesn’t have a particular symptom,” says Dr. Edwin Posadas, director of translational oncology and the medical director of the Urologic Oncology Program at Cedars-Sinai, in an earlier interview with SurvivorNet.
But changes in urinary function like urinating more or less often or waking up at night to go more than usual could be a sign of the disease. However, it’s important to note that these potential symptoms could also could be caused by a urinary tract infection or even an enlargement of the prostate gland (which is not cancer).
There’s No One Definitive Symptom for Prostate Cancer, But There Are Clues
Treatment Options for Late-Stage Prostate Cancer
People with late-stage prostate cancer usually undergo some combination of treatments, and new approvals are being made regularly, broadening the treatment options for advanced prostate cancer.
The drug nubeqa (also known as darolutamide) was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in combination with taxotere (docetaxel) for adult patients with metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer (mHSPC). This oral medication is in a category of anti-androgens or anti-testosterone drugs, and it works by blocking the effects of testosterone to slow the growth and spread of prostate cancer.
Xtandi (enzalutamide) is another androgen deprivation therapy. This oral medication is FDA-approved to treat non-metastatic (nmCRPC) and metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) and metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC). Erleada (apalutamide) is another FDA-approved oral medication for advanced prostate cancer. It can be used for people with metastatic castrate-sensitive prostate cancer (mCRPC).
PARP inhibitors can also be a good option for some people with advanced prostate cancer. These drugs work by stopping the activity of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase, a protein involved in DNA repair. This, in turn, causes DNA to be unable to repair itself in cancer cells and therefore leads to the death of these cancer cells. The two PARP inhibitors currently approved by the FDA are lynparza (olaparib) and rubraca (rucaparib). They are specifically approved for use in people with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) – this distinction means the prostate cancer has spread beyond the prostate and does not respond to hormone therapy.
In March 2022, another FDA approval paved the way for the drug pluvicto (lutetium Lu 177 vipivotide tetraxetan) to treat patients with prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA)-positive metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC). Some prostate cancers the express the protein PSMA which can be targeted with medication.
Screening Method for Prostate Cancer
PSA tests are the screening method used to screen for prostate cancer. These tests look for PSA in the bloodstream, which could indicate the presence of prostate cancer.
People who have a family history of prostate cancer – or other cancers – should begin screening for prostate cancer earlier than the average person. The current recommendation is to begin screening at age 50 if you have an average risk of prostate cancer.
Dr. Posadas says it’s important to notify your doctor about your risk factor, such as having a family history of prostate cancer. He tells SurvivorNet in an earlier interview, “We know as doctors that there are certain men who are at high risk for having prostate cancer. Men of African descent, for example, fall immediately into a high-risk category.”
Dr. Posadas continues, “Men whose fathers or brothers had prostate cancer are at two to three times the risk of the general man living in America of having prostate cancer. Those pieces of information are critical to bring forward in an examination when you’re seeing your doctor.”
People at a high risk of developing prostate cancer should start screening at age 40 or 45, depending upon your specific circumstances. Speak with your doctor about what’s best for you, and advocate for your health – lead each doctor’s appointment with a plan.
When Should I Get Tested for Prostate Cancer?
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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