The Safety and Efficacy of Targeted Alpha Therapy, Ac-225 Prostate-Specific Membrane Antigen, in Patients With Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BACKGROUND

Metastatic castration resistance prostate cancer (mCRPC) is a challenging disease with a significant burden of mortality and morbidity. Most of the patients attain resistance to the available treatments, necessitating further novel therapies in this clinical setting. Actinium 225 (Ac) prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) radioligand therapy has emerged as a promising option and has been utilized for the last decade. Although a few meta-analyses were performed on the efficacy and safety of Ac-PSMA RLT in mCRPC patients, several current studies have been added to the literature since the latest meta-analysis. We aimed to gather all individual studies to perform up-to-date meta-analyses.

METHODS

We searched the literature using Pubmed-Medline, Web of Science, Elsevier-Sceince Direct, and Cochrane-Central databases. The data for any PSA decline, over 50% PSA decline, overall survival (OS), progression-free survival (PFS), and toxicity profile were captured from the studies eligible for meta-analysis. We utilized the random effect model to generate pooled estimates.

RESULTS

The sixteen eligible studies contained 1102 patients. Sixty-three percent of patients achieved more than 50% PSA decline, while 82% had any PSA decline after the completion of therapy. The pooled mean OS and PFS were 12.72 months (9.52-15.91) and 11.02 months (6.88-15.15), respectively. The most common adverse event was xerostomia, with a pooled proportion of 84%. Grade ≥ 3 anemia, thrombocytopenia, leucopenia, and nephrotoxicity were encountered in 9%, 5%, 4%, and 4% of the patients.

CONCLUSIONS

Ac-PSMA RLT is an efficacious and safe treatment for mCRPC. Future well-designed randomized controlled studies comparing Ac-PSMA RLT with other approved therapeutic options would better comprehend the exact role of this therapy in the treatment sequence of mCRPC.