Adjuvant medical therapy for prostate cancer

Importance of the field: Prostate cancer is a common cancer and the role of adjuvant medical therapy continues to be investigated. An understanding of the use of adjuvant medical therapy is essential for the appropriate care of prostate cancer patients, especially for those with locally advanced or high-risk disease. Areas covered in this review: This article reviews the role of adjuvant treatment of non-metastatic prostate cancer. To identify all pertinent publications, a literature search of the National Library of Medicine (PubMed) from inception to 22 June 2010 was conducted for 'adjuvant prostate cancer', with these results filtered for clinical trials and systematic reviews. What the reader will gain: This work reviews the uses of adjuvant androgen deprivation therapy and chemotherapy for prostate cancer. There is a clear benefit from the use of androgen deprivation therapy in conjunction with radiation therapy for selected patients, but the role of postoperative chemotherapy is poorly defined. Identifying appropriate patients for adjuvant therapy continues to be a challenge. Take home message: There is a complex literature describing the role of adjuvant medical therapy in prostate cancer, which is reviewed here. Continuing and future clinical trials will define the utility of adjuvant therapy in this setting and require the support of the clinical community.