FDA approves new prostate cancer drug.

The New York Times (8/31, Pollack, Subscription Publication) (8/31, Pollack, Subscription Publication) reported that the FDA "approved a new life-prolonging drug for men with late-stage prostate cancer on Friday, adding to an increasingly crowded field. The new drug, which will be called Xtandi, was developed by Medivation, a small San Francisco pharmaceutical company, in partnership with the Japanese firm Astellas Pharma." The Times adds that in clinical trials, "men who received the drug, which was previously known as MDV3100, lived a median of 18.4 months, nearly five months longer than the median of 13.6 months for those who received a placebo."

        Bloomberg News (9/1, Armstrong) quoted Richard Pazdur, the FDA director of the Office of Hematology and Oncology Products, who said in a statement, "The need for additional treatment options for advanced prostate cancer continues to be important for patients. Xtandi is the latest treatment for this disease to demonstrate its ability to extend a patient's life."

        The AP (9/1) reported, "More than 241,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year and 28,170 will die from the disease, according to an estimate by the National Cancer Institute." Also reporting this story are Reuters (9/3), the San Francisco Business Times (9/1, Leuty, Subscription Publication), HealthDay (9/1), MedPage Today (9/1, Bankhead), and Medscape (9/4).