Long-term use of dasatinib in patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer after receiving the combination of dasatinib and docetaxel

John C Araujo,1 Geralyn C Trudel,2 Prashni Paliwal3 1Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology, Division of Cancer Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA; 2Bristol-Myers Squibb, Montreal, Quebec, Canada; 3Bristol-Myers Squibb, Wallingford, CT, USA Abstract: Dasatinib is a potent oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor which targets several kinases, including the SRC family kinases. SRC family kinases have been implicated in androgen therapy resistance that often develops in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC), which drives the need for non-androgen targeting therapies. This article describes the preclinical rationale for the use of combination dasatinib and docetaxel therapy in mCRPC, and highlights the results of a phase I–II trial in which 46 patients with mCRPC, treated with a regimen of dasatinib and docetaxel, demonstrated improvements in bone scans, high rates of soft tissue responses, and modulation of markers of bone turnover. This brief report discusses in detail follow-up data on two patients who remain alive after >2.5 years on dasatinib single-agent therapy after discontinuing docetaxel treatment. Keywords: case study, dasatinib, docetaxel, prostate cancer, targeted therapy