Docetaxel and Prednisone With/Out OGX-011 in Recurrent or Metastatic Prostate Cancer That Did Not Respond to Previous Hormone Therapy

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

Histologically or cytologically confirmed adenocarcinoma of the prostate

Metastatic or locally recurrent disease
Not curable with standard therapy

Systemic chemotherapy is indicated, due to disease progression while receiving androgen-ablative therapy (i.e., hormone-refractory disease)

Disease progression is defined as development of new metastatic lesions OR ≥ 2 consecutive rises in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) over a reference value

Androgen ablative therapy must have included either medical or surgical castration

Castrate level of testosterone (≤ 1.7 nmol/L) required if treated with medical androgen ablation
Patients with documented disease progression while on peripheral antiandrogens must also have documented PSA progression after stopping antiandrogens
PSA ≥ 5 ng/mL
No known CNS metastases

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

Performance status

ECOG 0-2

Life expectancy

At least 12 weeks

Hematopoietic

Absolute granulocyte count ≥ 1,500/mm^3
Platelet count ≥ 100,000/mm^3
No known bleeding disorder

Hepatic

PT and PTT or INR normal
Bilirubin normal
AST and ALT ≤ 1.5 times upper limit of normal (ULN)

Renal

Creatinine ≤ 1.5 times ULN

Cardiovascular

No significant cardiac dysfunction

Other

Fertile patients must use effective contraception
No pre-existing peripheral neuropathy ≥ grade 2
No active, uncontrolled infection
No significant neurological disorder that would preclude study compliance
No history of other malignancies within the past 5 years except adequately treated nonmelanoma skin cancer

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

Chemotherapy

No prior chemotherapy except estramustine and recovered
No other concurrent chemotherapy

Endocrine therapy

See Disease Characteristics
At least 4 weeks since prior antiandrogens (6 weeks for bicalutamide)
Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonist therapy must be continued* or restarted* during study treatment to maintain castrate levels of testosterone NOTE: *For patients receiving LHRH agonist therapy prior to study entry

Radiotherapy

At least 4 weeks since prior external beam radiotherapy except low-dose, nonmyelosuppressive radiotherapy

Must have had less than 25% of marrow irradiated
No prior strontium chloride Sr 89
No concurrent radiotherapy except low-dose, nonmyelosuppressive, palliative radiotherapy

Surgery

At least 2 weeks since prior major surgery

Other

At least 4 weeks since prior investigational agent
At least 4 weeks since prior anticancer therapy
No concurrent therapeutic anticoagulants except low-dose oral anticoagulants (i.e., 1 mg warfarin) or low molecular weight heparin
No other concurrent investigational agents
No other concurrent cytotoxic therapy