Highlights of recent research focused on the treatment of advanced prostate cancer.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review is designed to highlight recent research focused on improving outcomes in men with advanced prostate cancer.

RECENT FINDINGS: Recent randomized trials have suggested advantages to treating men with advanced prostate cancer earlier in their disease course with novel hormonal agents and in some cases chemotherapy. Work remains to identify the optimal sequence of systemic therapies for metastatic prostate cancer with a focus on biomarkers that might select men in need of novel therapeutics. Some men with oligometastatic disease may benefit from localized therapy to sites of isolated progression and research continues to focus on optimally selecting these men. Radiopharmaceuticals are changing the treatment paradigm in advanced prostate cancer with efforts ongoing to improve outcomes with better biomarkers for response and novel treatment combinations.

SUMMARY: Ongoing research focuses on refining the use of existing therapeutics and developing novel treatments and combinations for men with advanced prostate cancer.