Internal radiotherapy with radium223 dichloride: Preliminary results

Radium(223) dichloride (Xofigo (R)) recently granted marketing authorization (MA) in Europe for the treatment of patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer, symptomatic bone metastases and no known visceral metastatic disease. The development of this new metabolic radiotherapy in our department started with temporary authorizations for use and then under the MA, led us to evaluate its clinicobiological safety and efficacy in our patients. We have also proposed a monitoring of the therapeutic efficacy with (FNa)-F-18 PET-CT imaging. The treatment was particularly well tolerated and a clear analgesic effect was observed, especially after the first injections. The identification of a therapeutic efficacy through biological parameters and imaging has been more problematic. These results led us to discuss a more rigorous selection of patients eligible for this type of treatment. (C) 2015 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.