Research
Toremifene was also evaluated for prevention of prostate cancer and had the tentative brand name Acapodene.In 2007 the pharmaceutical company GTx, Inc was conducting two different phase 3 clinical trials; First, a pivotal Phase clinical trial for the treatment of serious side effects of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) (especially vertebral/spine fractures and hot flashes, lipid profile, and gynecomastia) for advanced prostate cancer, and second, a pivotal Phase III clinical trial for the prevention of prostate cancer in high risk men with high grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia, or PIN. Results of these trials are expected by first quarter of 2008An NDA for the first application (relief of prostate cancer ADT side effects) was submitted in Feb 2009, and in Oct 2009 the FDA said they would need more clinical data, e.g. another phase III trial.Ultimately, development was discontinued and toremifene was never marketed for complications associated with ADT or the treatment or prevention of prostate cancer.Toremifene may be useful in the prevention of bicalutamide-induced gynecomastia. Phase III Trial Results
A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized, 3 year clinical trial of toremifene was conducted using a sample of 1,260 men. Subjects had a median age of 64 years and were diagnosed with high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HGPIN), which is considered premalignant, though Thompson and Leach feel a low grade PIN could also be deemed premalignant.The sponsor, GTx, who designed and managed the study, found 34.7% of the placebo and 32.3% of the toremifene groups had cancer events.
No distinction was found in Gleason scores of either group.Previous murine studies using transgenic adenocarcinoma of mouse prostate (TRAMP) mice showed toremifene prevented palpable tumors in 60% of the animals. This study used toremifene as an early prophylactic, which differentiates it from the phase III human studies. References
Further reading
Taras TL, Wurz GT, Linares GR, DeGregorio MW (2000). "Clinical pharmacokinetics of toremifene". Clin Pharmacokinet. 39 (5): 327–34. doi:10.2165/00003088-200039050-00002. PMID 11108432. S2CID 26647296. Harvey HA, Kimura M, Hajba A (2006). "Toremifene: an evaluation of its safety profile". Breast. 15 (2): 142–57. doi:10.1016/j.breast.2005.09.007. PMID 16289904. Taneja SS, Smith MR, Dalton JT, Raghow S, Barnette G, Steiner M, Veverka KA (2006). "Toremifene--a promising therapy for the prevention of prostate cancer and complications of androgen deprivation therapy". Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 15 (3): 293–305. doi:10.1517/13543784.15.3.293. PMID 16503765. S2CID 29510508. Zhou WB, Ding Q, Chen L, Liu XA, Wang S (2011). "Toremifene is an effective and safe alternative to tamoxifen in adjuvant endocrine therapy for breast cancer: results of four randomized trials". Breast Cancer Res. Treat. 128 (3): 625–31. doi:10.1007/s10549-011-1556-5. PMID 21553116. S2CID 36985808. Gennari L, Merlotti D, Stolakis K, Nuti R (2012). "Pharmacokinetic evaluation of toremifene and its clinical implications for the treatment of osteoporosis". Expert Opin Drug Metab Toxicol. 8 (4): 505–13. doi:10.1517/17425255.2012.665873. PMID 22356442. S2CID 19547631. Mao C, Yang ZY, He BF, Liu S, Zhou JH, Luo RC, Chen Q, Tang JL (2012). "Toremifene versus tamoxifen for advanced breast cancer". Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2021 (7): CD008926. doi:10.1002/14651858.CD008926.pub2. PMC 8407374. PMID 22786516.