Patient Perspectives on Unmet Needs in mCRPC: Emphasizing Improved Quality of Life and Delay in Chemotherapy
Author(s)
Ernst-Guenther Carl, Diploma Business Economist1, Valéry Risson, MBA, PhD2, Vivienne Beckett, PhD3, Neha Noopur, MBA4, Geethanjani Rayapureddy, MBA4, Mo Zhou, PhD5.
1Prostatakrebs Selbsthilfe Gruppe Pinneberg, Tornesch, Germany, 2Novartis Pharma AG, Basel, Switzerland, 3Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited, London, United Kingdom, 4Novartis Healthcare Private Limited, Hyderabad, India, 5Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, East Hanover, NJ, USA.
1Prostatakrebs Selbsthilfe Gruppe Pinneberg, Tornesch, Germany, 2Novartis Pharma AG, Basel, Switzerland, 3Novartis Pharmaceuticals UK Limited, London, United Kingdom, 4Novartis Healthcare Private Limited, Hyderabad, India, 5Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, East Hanover, NJ, USA.
OBJECTIVES: To understand the perspective of patients with mCRPC regarding current treatment options and unmet medical need after first progression on androgen receptor pathway inhibitors (ARPIs).
METHODS: A targeted literature review of articles published in English on Embase, Regulators’, HTAs’ and Patient organization websites from January 2014 to April 2025 was conducted. The review included studies that 1) assessed mCRPC patients’ experience with current treatment options, their preferences and expectations and 2) explicitly included mCRPC patients who progressed following treatment with ARPIs.
RESULTS: From 2,942 articles reviewed, 16 qualitative and quantitative studies from multiple geographies were included in the analysis. Overall, patients reported that ARPIs had met their expectations in terms of treatment effectiveness and side effects, and cited ease of administration as a key benefit. Both patients and carers reported that they felt more positive about the disease condition compared to before ARPI and patients were less reliant/dependent on others. The main factors that impact patients’ quality of life (QoL) with the current treatments include fatigue, pain, sleep disturbances, mood disturbances, and gastrointestinal symptoms. Patients receiving chemotherapy reported fatigue, gastrointestinal issues, and greater anxiety more often than patients receiving other therapies such as ARPI and radium-223. Due to its debilitating adverse effects, patients viewed chemotherapy negatively and expressed a strong desire for more treatment options to delay chemotherapy. Patients with past experience of chemotherapy were found to be more hesitant to consider similar treatments. Patients expressed a strong need for treatments that delay disease progression, extend survival, while maintaining QoL.
CONCLUSIONS: QoL and delaying chemotherapy emerged as key priorities for patients with mCRPC, who often face a challenging trade-off between disease control and QoL. There is an unmet need for therapeutic options that effectively delay disease progression as well as initiation of chemotherapy without adversely impacting QoL.
METHODS: A targeted literature review of articles published in English on Embase, Regulators’, HTAs’ and Patient organization websites from January 2014 to April 2025 was conducted. The review included studies that 1) assessed mCRPC patients’ experience with current treatment options, their preferences and expectations and 2) explicitly included mCRPC patients who progressed following treatment with ARPIs.
RESULTS: From 2,942 articles reviewed, 16 qualitative and quantitative studies from multiple geographies were included in the analysis. Overall, patients reported that ARPIs had met their expectations in terms of treatment effectiveness and side effects, and cited ease of administration as a key benefit. Both patients and carers reported that they felt more positive about the disease condition compared to before ARPI and patients were less reliant/dependent on others. The main factors that impact patients’ quality of life (QoL) with the current treatments include fatigue, pain, sleep disturbances, mood disturbances, and gastrointestinal symptoms. Patients receiving chemotherapy reported fatigue, gastrointestinal issues, and greater anxiety more often than patients receiving other therapies such as ARPI and radium-223. Due to its debilitating adverse effects, patients viewed chemotherapy negatively and expressed a strong desire for more treatment options to delay chemotherapy. Patients with past experience of chemotherapy were found to be more hesitant to consider similar treatments. Patients expressed a strong need for treatments that delay disease progression, extend survival, while maintaining QoL.
CONCLUSIONS: QoL and delaying chemotherapy emerged as key priorities for patients with mCRPC, who often face a challenging trade-off between disease control and QoL. There is an unmet need for therapeutic options that effectively delay disease progression as well as initiation of chemotherapy without adversely impacting QoL.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-11, ISPOR Europe 2025, Glasgow, Scotland
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S2
Code
PCR176
Topic
Patient-Centered Research
Topic Subcategory
Patient-reported Outcomes & Quality of Life Outcomes
Disease
Oncology