A new compound binding to the androgen receptor is a candidate to treat advanced prostate cancer researchers suggest.
Men suffering from this type of cancer often receive anti-androgens can inhibit the activity of male hormones such as testosterone drive the tumor to develop. Many of these products target the androgen receptor to control the growth of tumors but they eventually become resistant to treatment by expressing more of their surface receptor.

Chris Tran and his colleagues have developed an anti-androgen "second generation" called MDV3100 that binds to the receptor and retains its anti-tumor activity both in vitro and in vivo in mice in the presence of high amounts of receptors. The MDV3100 acts both by inhibiting the movement of receptor to the nucleus and reducing its ability to activate the transcription of DNA.

This product is already being tested in patients with advanced prostate cancer and the first group of patients treated showed a significant decrease in blood PSA (prostate specific antigen), a marker of tumor growth.