What Is Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer (mCRPC)? A Plain-Language Guide
Updated: 2 days ago
Medically reviewed by Dr. Baraa Alnahhal, MD · Last reviewed: October 2026
Quick Answer: Key Facts About mCRPC
Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) is prostate cancer that has spread and keeps growing even when testosterone is lowered to a very low level with hormone therapy. It often causes no early symptoms, later bringing urination trouble, bone pain and fatigue. Treatment is individualized and may include adjusted hormone therapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapy and radiation. [1] [2]
Feature | Details |
What it is | Prostate cancer that has spread to other parts of the body and keeps growing even when testosterone is lowered to a very low level with hormone therapy. |
What it feels like | Often no symptoms at first; later, difficulty starting urination, weak urine stream, back and bone pain, arm and leg weakness, bones that break without cause, and deep tiredness. |
What makes it unique | It's not a single disease stage you choose — it's what happens when prostate cancer learns to grow despite low testosterone, usually within a few years of hormone therapy, though timing is hard to predict. |
Who gets it | Men already being treated for prostate cancer with hormone therapy; there are no specific risk factors for developing mCRPC itself. |
How it is treated | Hormone therapy medicines are switched or added, and chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, radiopharmaceutical therapy, and bone-directed radiation may follow — care is individualized based on where the cancer has spread, overall health, and preferences. |
What the research says
Radioligand therapy has extended survival. In the VISION phase 3 trial of 831 men with PSMA-positive mCRPC previously treated with an androgen-receptor-pathway inhibitor and one or two taxane regimens, adding lutetium-177–PSMA-617 to standard care lengthened median overall survival to 15.3 vs 11.3 months and imaging-based progression-free survival to 8.7 vs 3.4 months. Grade 3 or higher adverse events were more common (52.7% vs 38.0%). (Sartor et al., N Engl J Med, 2021) [5]
PARP inhibitors help men with certain DNA repair gene changes. In the PROfound phase 3 trial, among 245 men in cohort A whose cancers carried qualifying DNA repair gene alterations and had progressed on enzalutamide or abiraterone, olaparib lengthened imaging-based progression-free survival to 7.4 vs 3.6 months (hazard ratio 0.34). (de Bono et al., N Engl J Med, 2020) [6]
mCRPC is uncommon and mostly affects older men. Using the French national healthcare database, researchers estimated mCRPC prevalence at 62 and incidence at 21 cases per 100,000 men in 2014, with incidence highest at ages 80–89 (175 per 100,000) and under 1 per 100,000 at ages 40–49. (Thurin et al., Cancer Epidemiol, 2020) [4]
What is metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer?
Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer, often shortened to mCRPC, is prostate cancer that has spread away from the prostate and no longer responds to hormone therapy treatments. [1]
Hormone therapy for prostate cancer, also called androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), lowers the levels of the hormone testosterone in the body. Prostate cancer cells typically use testosterone to help them grow. In healthcare, "castration" means lowering testosterone to a very low level. This is almost always done with medicines, but surgery also can lower testosterone. [1]
Hormone therapy medicines often control the cancer for years. Over time, many cancers adapt and begin growing again, even when testosterone levels stay low. When this happens, it's called castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC). [1]
CRPC can be nonmetastatic or metastatic. Nonmetastatic CRPC (nmCRPC) means that imaging tests don't detect any cancer outside of the area of the prostate. When imaging tests find areas of cancer in other parts of the body, it's considered to be mCRPC. [1]
When cancer spreads, healthcare professionals say it metastasizes. If the cancer spreads while hormone therapy still helps control it, this is called metastatic castration-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC). If the cancer spreads and no longer responds to hormone therapy medicines, it's considered mCRPC. [1]
There are many treatments for mCRPC. While they may help manage the disease and extend your life, treatments aren't likely to cure the cancer. Treatments may include hormone therapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, radiopharmaceutical therapy, and others. You also might consider taking part in a clinical trial. [1] [2]
You may also see this condition called metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer, metastatic hormone-resistant prostate cancer, or metastatic ADT-resistant prostate cancer — they all mean the same thing. [1]
Where does mCRPC spread?
Prostate cancer cells can spread through the blood or through the lymphatic system (the network that carries fluid and immune cells through the body). When prostate cancer spreads, it most often goes to the lymph nodes, bones, liver, and lungs. [1]
Where it spreads | Why it matters |
Lymph nodes | One of the places prostate cancer most often spreads [1] |
Bones | A bone scan can detect spread here; radiation to an affected bone can help with pain and lower the chance it breaks [2] |
Liver | A CT scan can detect spread to organs such as the liver [2] |
Lungs | A CT scan can detect spread to organs such as the lungs [2] |
What are the symptoms of mCRPC?
Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer doesn't always cause symptoms at first. This cancer happens when prostate cancer spreads and no longer responds to hormone therapy treatments. Sometimes it's found with blood tests or imaging tests before it causes symptoms. [1]
Having a prostate cancer that is castration resistant doesn't cause specific symptoms. Symptoms typically happen when the cancer grows large enough to cause symptoms. [1]
Symptom | What it involves |
Difficulty getting started when urinating [1] | Trouble beginning to pee |
Straining to urinate [1] | Having to push to pee |
Weak urine stream [1] | Pee flows slowly or weakly |
Back pain [1] | Pain in the back |
Bone pain [1] | Pain in the bones |
Weakness in the arms and legs [1] | Less strength in the limbs |
Bones that break without a clear cause [1] | Breaks without an accident or fall |
Feeling very tired [1] | Deep, ongoing tiredness |
When should you see a doctor?
Make an appointment with a doctor or other healthcare professional if you have any symptoms that worry you. [1] Get emergency care right away for new or worsening back pain with weakness, numbness or tingling in the legs, or loss of bladder or bowel control, because cancer in the spine can press on the spinal cord.
What causes mCRPC?
Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer happens when the cancer grows and spreads despite treatment with hormone therapy. For most prostate cancers, hormone therapy helps control the disease at first. Eventually the cancer cells may figure out how to grow without testosterone. Cells that can grow during hormone therapy are called castration-resistant cells. [1]
It's difficult to predict how long until the cancer becomes resistant to hormone therapy. About half of those treated with hormone therapy become resistant within 2 to 3 years. And about half become resistant after more than 2 to 3 years. [1]
Healthcare professionals think this might happen for two main reasons. [1]
Some cells don't need testosterone to grow. If most of the cancer cells need testosterone to grow, hormone therapy may control the cancer at first. But if some of the cells don't need testosterone, they might keep growing and multiplying. With time, those few cells could turn into many. [1]
Some cells change in response to treatment. Cancer cells might adapt to treatment and change. The changes could allow the cells to grow and multiply, even as treatment continues. Sometimes prostate cancer treated with hormone therapy turns into treatment-related neuroendocrine prostate cancer — a type of prostate cancer that resists hormone therapy treatment. [1]
How does prostate cancer spread?
Metastatic prostate cancer happens when cells break away from the cancer in the prostate and spread to other parts of the body. If the cancer no longer responds to hormone therapy, then it's considered mCRPC. The cells travel through the blood or the lymphatic system, most often settling in the lymph nodes, bones, liver, and lungs. [1]
What increases the risk?
There are no risk factors for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. [1]
How is mCRPC diagnosed?
Healthcare professionals may suspect that a prostate cancer is castration resistant based on blood tests, imaging tests, and your symptoms. To know whether the cancer is mCRPC, healthcare professionals use imaging tests to look for signs that the cancer has spread. [2]
What does a PSA test show?
A PSA test measures the amount of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in the blood. PSA is a protein that's made by healthy prostate cells and cancerous prostate cells. A high level of PSA can be a sign of cancer. Other conditions that aren't cancer also can raise the level of PSA. [2]
Sometimes the first sign of castration resistance is a rising PSA level in someone who is taking hormone therapy for prostate cancer. There isn't a certain PSA level that says you might have castration-resistant prostate cancer. Instead, your healthcare team decides this based on your particular situation and results of imaging tests. Your level might be affected by your previous treatments and any hormone therapy medicines you take. [2]
What does a testosterone test show?
A testosterone test measures the amount of testosterone hormone in the blood. If your PSA level starts going up, your healthcare professional also might test your testosterone level. [2]
A testosterone level below 50 nanograms per deciliter (ng/dL) is considered castration level. If your testosterone is at castration level and the cancer is growing, this may be a sign of castration-resistant prostate cancer. If your testosterone level has risen, it may be a sign that your hormone therapy treatment isn't working as expected. Your healthcare team might adjust your treatment to lower the level — this might help stop the cancer from growing. [2]
What imaging tests are used?
Imaging tests make pictures of the body that the healthcare team uses to look for signs of cancer. Sometimes the first sign that the cancer is castration resistant is an imaging test that shows a new area of cancer or growth in an existing area of cancer in someone who is taking hormone therapy. [2]
Imaging test | How it works | What it detects |
Bone scan | Nuclear imaging with small amounts of radioactive tracers and a special camera [2] | Cancer that has spread to the bones |
CT scan | X-ray techniques create cross-sectional "slices" of bones and soft tissues [2] | Spread to lymph nodes, organs, or other places |
MRI scan | Magnetic field and radio waves create body pictures [2] | Spread to lymph nodes or other places |
PET scan | Radioactive tracer injected into a vein; images show where tracer builds up [2] | Cancer anywhere in the body |
PSMA PET scan | Tracer sticks to prostate-specific membrane antigen, a protein on the surface of prostate cancer cells [2] | Prostate cancer that has spread anywhere in the body |
Choline C-11 PET scan | Tracer taken up more by prostate cancer cells than by most other cells [2] | Used if other imaging tests haven't found the cancer [2] |
FDG PET scan | Tracer contains a radioactive substance and glucose (a simple sugar) [2] | Used if other imaging tests haven't found the cancer [2] |
What is a biopsy?
A biopsy is a procedure to remove a sample of tissue for testing in a lab. For mCRPC, the kind of biopsy you have depends on where the cancer has spread. Often a healthcare professional puts a needle through the skin and into the cancer to get some cells. In the lab, tests can show whether the concerning growth of cells is made up of prostate cancer cells. Other tests on the cells might give more information, and the healthcare team may use the information to create a treatment plan. [2]
Why is genetic testing done?
Genetic testing uses a sample of blood or saliva to look for variations in the DNA. Your healthcare team might recommend genetic testing if you haven't had it before. Some mCRPC treatments work better in people who are born with or who develop certain DNA variations. Sometimes genetic tests provide information about cancer risk that can be helpful for blood relatives. [2]
What is the treatment for mCRPC?
Treatment for mCRPC may help manage the disease and extend your life. Treatments aren't likely to cure the cancer. Options may include hormone therapy, chemotherapy, targeted therapy, radiopharmaceutical treatments, immunotherapy, and radiation therapy. [2]
Your healthcare team may choose your treatment plan based on the other cancer treatments you had in the past, the cancer medicines you're currently taking, any symptoms you're having, where the cancer has spread, how many places in your body have cancer, your overall health, any other serious health conditions you have and their treatments, and your personal preferences and other concerns you have about cancer treatment. [2]
Treatments for managing mCRPC are an active area of cancer research. Researchers are looking at new medicines, new ways of using existing medicines, and the order in which to give prostate cancer treatments for the best results. You might choose to take part in a clinical trial to study the latest prostate cancer treatments. Talk with your healthcare team about your options. [2]
Treatment option | What it does | When it's used |
Hormone therapy | Stops testosterone from being made or from reaching cancer cells [2] | Often continued, with medicines switched or added [2] |
Chemotherapy | Strong medicines given through a vein kill fast-growing cancer cells [2] | Used with hormone therapy or when hormone therapy stops working [2] |
Targeted therapy | Medicines that attack cancer cells in a specific way [2] | Often used when hormone therapy is no longer working [2] |
Immunotherapy | Helps the immune system find and kill cancer cells [2] | Used in some patients with specific DNA changes [2] |
Radiopharmaceutical therapy | Radioactive medicines deliver radiation directly to cancer cells [2] | Targets PSMA protein on cells or targets the bones [2] |
Radiation therapy | Powerful energy beams aimed at specific spots [2] | Helps manage cancer that has spread to the bones [2] |
How does hormone therapy work for mCRPC?
Hormone therapy for prostate cancer stops the hormone testosterone either from being made or from reaching prostate cancer cells. Most people with castration-resistant prostate cancer already take hormone therapy medicines. If the cancer starts growing or spreads, the treatment often continues — stopping hormone therapy could make the cancer grow or get worse. The care team might switch the medicines or add new ones, and a change in medicines might slow the growth of the cancer. [2]
Hormone therapy treatments include medicines that stop the body from making testosterone — called LHRH agonists and antagonists (also called gonadotropin-releasing hormone or GnRH agonists and antagonists), such as degarelix (Firmagon) and leuprolide (Eligard, Lupron Depot, others), given as shots, and relugolix (Orgovyx), which comes in pill form. They also include medicines that stop testosterone from acting on cancer cells — called antiandrogens; newer forms are sometimes called androgen receptor pathway inhibitors (ARPIs) or androgen receptor signaling inhibitors (ARSIs) — such as apalutamide (Erleada), darolutamide (Nubeqa), enzalutamide (Xtandi), and abiraterone (Yonsa, Zytiga). Surgery to remove both testicles, called orchiectomy, lowers testosterone levels in the body quickly. [2]
Side effects of hormone therapy include hot flashes, mood swings, memory loss, loss of muscle, an increase in body fat, a loss of sex drive, and more difficulty getting an erection. Other risks include an increased chance of getting diabetes and heart disease. [2]
What is chemotherapy for mCRPC?
Chemotherapy treats cancer with strong medicines. Chemotherapy medicines are sometimes used with hormone therapy medicines for mCRPC. Chemotherapy also helps treat the cancer when hormone therapy is no longer working. [2]
Chemotherapy medicines commonly used for prostate cancer include docetaxel (Beizray, Docivyx, Taxotere) and cabazitaxel (Jevtana), among others. A healthcare professional gives these medicines through a vein, and the treatments typically happen once every three weeks. [2]
Side effects of these medicines include feeling very tired, easy bruising, and more-frequent infections. They also can damage the nerves in the fingers and toes — a condition called peripheral neuropathy — which can cause numbness, tingling, or pain in the fingers and toes. [2] Other chemotherapy medicines exist; if one stops working, your healthcare team might try other chemotherapy medicines. [2]
What is targeted therapy?
Targeted therapy for cancer is a treatment that uses medicines that attack the cancer cells in a specific way that causes the cells to die. For mCRPC, targeted therapy medicines might be used when hormone therapy is no longer working. [2]
The most common targeted therapy medicines used for prostate cancer are called poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitors. They include niraparib (Zejula), olaparib (Lynparza), rucaparib (Rubraca), and talazoparib (Talzenna). These medicines come as pills or capsules you swallow. PARP inhibitors block the action of enzymes in the cancer cells that help repair breaks in the DNA. [2]
These targeted therapy medicines work best in people with certain DNA changes in their cells. To find out if these changes are present in your cells, your healthcare team may test a sample of your blood or saliva, as well as some of your cancer cells. For every 10 people with advanced prostate cancer, research finds that 2 to 3 people may have cells that might respond to treatment with PARP inhibitors. [2]
Side effects of these medicines include nausea, loss of appetite, and feeling very tired. Other side effects include diarrhea, cough, and easy bruising. [2]
What is immunotherapy?
Immunotherapy for cancer is a treatment with medicine that helps the body's immune system kill cancer cells. Cancer cells survive by hiding from the immune system. Immunotherapy helps the immune system cells find and kill the cancer cells. [2]
For mCRPC, immunotherapy treatments most often involve medicines called immune checkpoint inhibitors. These medicines help immune system cells find cancer cells. Some cells can send signals called immune checkpoints to the immune system, telling immune cells not to attack. Usually, immune checkpoints help keep the immune system from hurting healthy cells. But some cancer cells also send these signals. Immune checkpoint inhibitor medicines stop cancer cells from sending a signal to not attack. [2]
One example of an immune checkpoint inhibitor used for prostate cancer is pembrolizumab (Keytruda). It only works in people with cancer cells that have certain DNA changes. Most prostate cancers don't respond to this treatment — for every 100 people with advanced prostate cancer, research finds that 2 to 5 people may have cells that might respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors. [2]
Side effects of immunotherapy can include itchy skin, diarrhea, loss of appetite, rash, and feeling very tired. Sometimes this treatment causes the immune system to attack the organs, leading to serious complications. [2]
What is radiopharmaceutical therapy?
Radiopharmaceutical therapy uses medicines that contain a radioactive substance, called radiopharmaceuticals. Radiopharmaceutical treatments used for cancer can deliver radiation to cancer cells. [2]
Type | Medicine example | How it works | When it's used | Side effects |
Treatment that targets PSMA | Lutetium Lu-177 vipivotide tetraxetan (Pluvicto) | A molecule finds and sticks to the PSMA protein on prostate cancer cells, then releases radiation directly into the cells through an IV [2] | Can treat prostate cancer anywhere in the body; cells must have the PSMA protein, which most do [2] | Dry mouth, dry eyes, nausea, feeling very tired [2] |
Treatment that targets the bones | Radium Ra-223 dichloride (Xofigo) | A radioactive substance attracted to bones travels through a vein to the bones and releases radiation there [2] | Used when prostate cancer spreads to the bones, but not to other parts of the body [2] | Diarrhea, feeling very tired [2] |
What is radiation therapy?
Radiation therapy treats cancer with powerful energy beams. The energy can come from X-rays, protons, and other sources. During radiation therapy, you lie on a table while a machine directs radiation to precise points on your body. [2]
Radiation therapy can help manage mCRPC that spreads to the bones. Radiation to the affected bone can help with pain and lower the chances that the bone might break. [2]
Radiation for cancer that spreads to the bones often uses a kind of treatment called stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT). This treatment aims beams of radiation from many angles at the cancer. The point where the beams meet gets a very large dose of radiation. SBRT is often given in one or a few treatments. [2]
What role does palliative care play?
Palliative care is a special type of healthcare that helps you feel better when you have a serious illness. If you have cancer, palliative care can help relieve pain and other symptoms. A team of healthcare professionals gives palliative care. This team can include doctors, nurses, and other specially trained professionals. Their goal is to improve the quality of life for you and your family. [2]
Palliative care specialists work with you, your family, and your healthcare team to help you feel better. They provide an extra layer of support while you have cancer treatment. You can have palliative care at the same time as treatment for cancer, such as surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy. When palliative care is used with all of the other appropriate treatments, people with cancer may feel better and live longer. [2]
How can you cope with this diagnosis?
Finding out your prostate cancer is no longer responding to hormone therapy can cause a range of feelings. People with mCRPC sometimes describe feeling distress, fear, anger, and sadness. With time, each person may figure out a way to cope. Until you find what works for you, here are some ways of coping that you can try. [2]
Learn enough to make treatment decisions. Learn as much as you need to know about your cancer and its treatment to feel comfortable talking about your options with your healthcare team. Ask your healthcare professional to recommend some reliable sources of information. [2]
Find a good listener. Finding someone who is willing to listen to you talk about your hopes and fears can be helpful. This could be a friend or family member. A counselor, medical social worker, or clergy member also may offer helpful guidance and care. [2]
Connect with other cancer survivors. Other people with prostate cancer sometimes are best at knowing what you're going through. They can provide a unique network of support. Ask your healthcare team about support groups or community organizations that can connect you with other people with cancer, or find support online through communities where you can connect with others for support, practical information, and answers to everyday questions. [2]
How should you prepare for appointments?
If you have symptoms that worry you, start by making an appointment with a doctor or other healthcare professional. Because appointments can be brief, it's a good idea to be prepared. [2]
Preparation step | Why it helps |
Ask about any restrictions (such as diet) when booking [2] | Avoids arriving unprepared for tests |
Write down any symptoms, including unrelated ones [2] | Captures clues the team might otherwise miss |
Write down key personal information [2] | Includes major stresses or recent life changes [2] |
Make a list of all medicines, vitamins, and supplements [2] | Helps the team avoid interactions |
Consider taking a family member or friend along [2] | They may remember things you missed or forgot |
Write down questions to ask [2] | Makes the most of a brief appointment |
Useful questions include: What's my PSA level? Has hormone therapy stopped working for me? Where is the prostate cancer in my body? Has it spread beyond my prostate? Will I need more tests? What are my treatment options? Is there a clinical trial available for me? Is there one treatment option you think is best for me? Do I need cancer treatment right away, or is it possible to wait and see if the cancer grows? What are the potential side effects of each treatment? What is the chance that my prostate cancer will be cured with treatment? If you had a friend or family member in my situation, what would you recommend? Should I see a specialist, what will that cost, and will my insurance cover it? Are there brochures or other printed material I can take, and what websites do you recommend? [2]
Conclusion and next steps
Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer means the cancer has spread beyond the prostate and learned to grow even when testosterone is lowered to a very low level. It's a turning point in prostate cancer care — but it's not the end of the options. There are many treatments available, from switching or adding hormone therapy medicines to chemotherapy, targeted therapy, immunotherapy, radiopharmaceutical therapy, and bone-directed radiation. Care is personalized to where the cancer has spread, what treatments came before, and what matters most to them — and when palliative care is used with other appropriate treatments, people with cancer may feel better and live longer. [2] Talking openly with your healthcare team about tests, trials, and side effects helps you stay in control of your care.
Talk with a healthcare professional. If you've been treated for prostate cancer with hormone therapy and develop symptoms that worry you — such as bone pain, a weak urine stream, or deep tiredness — contact your healthcare team. For more plain-language guides to prostate cancer and advanced cancer topics, explore the related articles on Rinnit.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does "castration-resistant" mean?
The term "castration-resistant" means the cancer keeps growing even though testosterone is lowered to a very low level — the "castration level" — by hormone therapy. Prostate cancer cells usually need testosterone to grow, but castration-resistant cells figure out how to grow without it. [1] [2]
What does "metastatic" mean?
The term "metastatic" means the cancer has spread away from the prostate to other parts of the body. Imaging tests can find cancer outside the prostate; when they do, in a person whose cancer no longer responds to hormone therapy, it's mCRPC. If no spread is found on imaging, it's called nonmetastatic CRPC (nmCRPC). [1]
Does mCRPC cause symptoms?
Not at first. It's often found through blood tests or imaging before symptoms appear. When symptoms do happen, they can include difficulty starting to urinate, a weak urine stream, back and bone pain, arm and leg weakness, bones that break without an accident, and feeling very tired. [1]
How common is it for prostate cancer to become resistant?
About half of those treated with hormone therapy become resistant within 2 to 3 years, and about half become resistant after more than 2 to 3 years. It's difficult to predict how long until resistance develops. [1]
Where does mCRPC spread most often?
Most often to the lymph nodes, bones, liver, and lungs, traveling through the blood or the lymphatic system. [1]
How is it diagnosed?
Through blood tests — a rising PSA (prostate-specific antigen) and a testosterone level below 50 ng/dL while the cancer grows — plus imaging tests such as bone scans, CT scans, MRI scans, and PET scans. A biopsy and genetic testing may also be used. [2]
Can it be cured?
Treatments may help manage the disease and extend life, but they aren't likely to cure the cancer. [1] [2]
What treatments are available?
Hormone therapy medicines can be switched or added, and chemotherapy, targeted therapy (PARP inhibitors), immunotherapy (immune checkpoint inhibitors), radiopharmaceutical therapy (medicines that deliver radiation to PSMA proteins or bones), radiation therapy (such as SBRT for bone pain), and palliative care are all options — chosen based on where the cancer has spread, previous treatments, overall health, and personal preferences. [2]
Should I keep taking hormone therapy if my cancer becomes castration-resistant?
Usually yes. Most men keep taking their testosterone-lowering therapy while new treatments are added. Do not stop any medicine without talking with your care team first.
Is genetic testing recommended for mCRPC?
Often yes. Testing the tumor and your inherited genes can find changes, such as in the BRCA genes, that make some targeted medicines an option. It can also show whether family members may want testing.
Related Reading
PSMA-Targeted Therapy (Pluvicto): How It Works and What to Expect explains PSMA-targeted therapy for advanced prostate cancer.
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References
Mayo Clinic Staff. Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC): Symptoms and causes. Mayo Clinic. December 24, 2025. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/metastatic-castration-resistant-prostate-cancer/symptoms-causes/syc-20593191
Mayo Clinic Staff. Metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC): Diagnosis and treatment. Mayo Clinic. December 24, 2025. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/metastatic-castration-resistant-prostate-cancer/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20593192
National Cancer Institute, Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program. Cancer Stat Facts: Prostate Cancer. SEER. Accessed October 15, 2026. https://seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/prost.html
Thurin NH, et al. Epidemiology of metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer: A first estimate of incidence and prevalence using the French nationwide healthcare database. Cancer Epidemiol. 2020;69:101833. PMID 33068878. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.canep.2020.101833
Sartor O, et al. Lutetium-177-PSMA-617 for Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer. N Engl J Med. 2021;385(12):1091-1103. PMID 34161051. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2107322
de Bono J, et al. Olaparib for Metastatic Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer. N Engl J Med. 2020;382(22):2091-2102. PMID 32343890. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa1911440
Medical disclaimer
This article is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for diagnosis and treatment decisions.
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