ORLANDO, FL, USA (UroToday.com) - Rahul Aggarwal and colleagues performed a pilot study to evaluate the utility of a multidisciplinary (MD) clinic to decrease the adverse effects of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in prostate cancer patients.
Patients met on a rotating monthly schedule: months 1, 4, 7, and 10 included provider appointments, injections, and exercise physiologist visits; months 2, 5, 8, and 11 included visits with dieticians; and months 3, 6, 9, and 12 included meetings with symptom management specialists. Patients had routine assessments of weight, body mass index (BMI), body fat percent, lipids, fasting glucose, and hemoglobin A1c. Outcomes measured included change in percent body fat mass, patient adherence to the MD clinic schedule, and changes in fasting glucose/Hgb A1c, lipids, physical activity level as measured by an accelerometer, and body mass index.
Twenty-two patients were enrolled in the study from November 2013 to May 2014. Patients had a 95% adherence rate, exceeding the preset target of 80%. Mean percent change from baseline was acceptably low for hemoglobin A1c (+0.3%), fasting glucose (+4.4%), fasting LDL (+3.7%), and body weight (+2.2%).
The authors concluded that conducting a MD clinic is feasible and can minimize metabolic impact in patients on ADT. A phase 2 trial is ongoing that compares MD clinic to usual care.
Presented by Rahul Raj Aggarwal, Tammy J. Rodvelt, Michael W. Rabow, Greta Macaire, Regan Fedric, Geronima Cortese-Jimenez, and Eric Jay Small at the 2015 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium - "Integrating Biology Into Patient-Centric Care" - February 26 - 28, 2015 - Rosen Shingle Creek - Orlando, Florida USA
University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA USA
Reported by Nikhil Waingankar, MD, medical writer for UroToday.com