The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on December 1 approved Gallium 68 PSMA-11 (Ga 68 PSMA-11) as the first drug for PET imaging of prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) positive lesions in men with prostate cancer.
CT, MRI and bone scans are convention methods currently in use to image patients with recurrent prostate cancer. However, these approaches are limited in their abilities to detect prostate cancer lesions in smaller amounts. Two other drugs have that have been approved for prostate cancer imagine are only approved for use in patients with more aggressive instances of cancer recurrence.
“Ga 68 PSMA-11 is an important tool that can aid health care providers in assessing prostate cancer,” said Alex Gorovets, M.D., acting deputy director of the Office of Specialty Medicine in FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “With this first approval of a PSMA-targeted PET imaging drug for men with prostate cancer, providers now have a new imaging approach to detect whether or not the cancer has spread to other parts of the body.”
Gallium 68 PSMA-11 gives health care providers a new imaging approach to early detection and cancer spread. Full text of the FDA’s press release can be found here.
About Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation
The Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation is the only statewide organization dedicated entirely to prostate cancer awareness, education, timely detection and survivorship. The organization sponsors awareness campaigns, conducts public education events and organizes screening programs throughout the state. The Foundation also provides support to survivors and men undergoing treatment through a network of peer group meetings and patient navigation programs. The Foundation believes that access to information and treatment should be available to all men in Arkansas.
