ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - A local oncologist is excited about the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s decision to expand approval of a new prostate cancer drug.

Washington University School of Medicine oncologist Dr. Bruce Roth said up until now, the cancer pill Zytiga was only approved for use in men who had already failed chemotherapy. But, he said, it ‘s now been found to work in men who have not yet had chemotherapy.

“Something that’s oral, is relatively non-toxic, and maybe could prolong the time that patients require a more toxic therapy like chemotherapy, would be a welcome addition to the armamentarium,” Roth said.

“So for patients who have progressive disease but maybe not all that symptomatic and therefore you don’t want to decrease their quality of life with a more toxic therapy like chemotherapy, this would be the perfect place to use something like this.”

The typical patient taking Zytiga survived five months longer than the patient taking a fake pill, or placebo.