Prostate Vaccine is Endorsed

Mar 30, 11:57 AM

Current Headlines: By The Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- Federal health advisers have endorsed an experimental vaccine to treat advanced prostate cancer as safe and effective.

The Food and Drug Administration advisers voted unanimously Thursday to say Provenge is safe. They then voted 13-4 to say there is substantial evidence that it works in treating advanced prostate cancer that no longer responds to hormone treatment.

The FDA isn't required to follow the advice of its advisory committees, but it usually does. A final FDA decision on whether to approve Provenge, also called sipuleucel-T, is expected May 15. The vaccine is made by Seattle-based Dendreon Corp.

If approved, Provenge would become the third cancer vaccine but the first that is therapeutic. FDA-approved vaccines against liver and cervical cancer are both preventive.

Neither of two studies Dendreon submitted to the FDA in support of its application achieved their primary goal in showing Provenge delayed the progress of the disease, according to the agency.

However, the results of the first study suggested the vaccine could extend the lives of patients by 4.5 months compared with those given only dummy treatment. The only other prostate cancer drug shown to prolong the lives of patients is Taxotere, also called docetaxel.

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