Invention:
This innovation is the repurposing of drugs used for testosterone-suppression (androgen deprivation) as an innovative strategy to treat heart failure or dilated cardiomyopathy. These drugs are used for treatment of patients with advanced prostate cancer or for adolescents presenting with precocious puberty. This research is supported by published data demonstrating that surgical suppression of testosterone delays cardiac dysfunction and the progression to symptomatic heart failure (HF), which is defined by edema/congestion. In addition, surgical suppression of testosterone prolongs survival in male mice with progressive dilated cardiomyopathy.
Background:
Despite advances in evidence-based pharmacological therapies, patients with heart failure (HF) continue to exhibit significant morbidity and excess mortality at rates of up to 30% at 1 year. This high event rate coupled with ongoing symptoms of fatigue, cardiac cachexia, and a metabolic shift toward catabolism has led to an intense search for therapies to further improve HF symptoms. Nearly one in three people in the U.S. will develop heart failure, characterized by fluid retention (edema) in the lungs and elsewhere. This leads to difficult breathing, deterioration of physical capacity, restriction of normal activities and death.
Applications:
- Prevention of heart failure
- Recovery from heart failure
Advantages:
- Repurposed use of a common drug
- Efficacy supported by promising data from clinical trials
- Easier treatment
