Daniel P. Petrylak, MD

Yale University Cancer Center

New Haven, Connecticut

Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, leads the genitourinary cancers medical oncology team at Smilow Cancer Hospital as director of the genitourinary cancer research group, professor, and co-director of the Cancer Signaling Network program. Dr. Petrylak joined Yale from Herbert Irving Cancer Center at Columbia University Medical Center with New York-Presbyterian Hospital, where he served as Professor of Medicine (Medical Oncology) and Urology and began his appointment in September of 2012. Dr. Petrylak is a member of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO), American College of Physicians (ACP), American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), American Urological Association (AUA), and the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG). After serving for more than 20 years as the advanced bladder chair for SWOG, Dr. Petrylak is now the Vice Chair of the Genitourinary Committee. He additionally has led multiple national and international studies in prostate and bladder cancer.

Dr. Petrylak’s research interests span both prostate and bladder cancer. He led an investigator-initiated trial of docetaxel and estramustine in castration resistant prostate cancer. The results of this study supported a phase 3 trial of this combination in SWOG led by Dr. Petrylak, which in turn, supported the FDA approval of docetaxel for castration resistant prostate cancer. This was one of the first two trials to demonstrate a survival benefit in this state of disease. Dr. Petrylak has also been instrumental in the development of immunotherapy and targeted therapies for refractory bladder cancer. His work with Enfortumab Vedotin has supported the accelerated and full FDA approval of this drug.

Dr. Petrylak received his undergraduate degree from Columbia College and his medical degree from Case Western University School of Medicine. He completed his internship and residency at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and his fellowship in medical oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. He has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters on prostate and bladder cancer research outcomes.

Talks by Daniel P. Petrylak, MD

Anti-Androgen Trials

Posted by Daniel P. Petrylak, MD | Jun 2020

Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, Director of Genitourinary Oncology, Professor of Medicine and Urology, Co-Leader of Cancer Signaling Networks, and Co-Director of the Signal Transduction Program at Yale University Cancer Center, gives an overview of the most important, recent anti-androgen trials, as well as those that are currently still underway. He highlights how the trials were conducted, what the researchers found, and what he feels is still missing from the research. Dr. Petrylak compares and contrasts the different studies and draws conclusions about each. He also goes over a couple of trials with novel anti-androgens with unique mechanisms of action, which are currently in phase 1, that are showing promise.

A Medical Oncology Perspective on Treating Advanced Prostate Cancer During COVID-19

Posted by Daniel P. Petrylak, MD | May 2020

Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, Director of Genitourinary Oncology, Professor of Medicine and Urology, Co-Leader of Cancer Signaling Networks, and Co-Director of the Signal Transduction Program at Yale University Cancer Center in New Haven, Connecticut, shares his perspective on treating advanced prostate cancer patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Petrylak is only seeing patients who need to be treated and is pre-screening patients by checking temperature and travel history. If a prostate cancer patient is advanced and develops COVID, he suggests deferring treatment for all non-life threatening situations until the patient tests negative for COVID. According to Chinese data, cancer has predisposed people to a more aggressive course of COVID, so PCa patients should self-isolate to protect themselves from the virus. Dr. Petrylak also shares that chemotherapy may blunt the immunoresponse system on a long term basis, so patients should weigh the risks and benefits for pursuing treatment and take precautions of self-isolating, washing hands, and social distancing if they use chemotherapy treatment.

Enfortumab Vedotin Approved by FDA for Patients With Refractory Urothelial Carcinoma

Posted by Daniel P. Petrylak, MD | Jan 2020

Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, discusses the recent FDA approval of the antibody drug complex enfortumab vedotin for treating refractory advanced urothelial disease in patients previously treated with immunotherapy and chemotherapy. He describes how the drug complex works to fight bladder cancer by recognizing Nectin-4, a biomarker expressed on the surface of bladder cancer cells, and delivering MMAE to cause cytotoxic activity. Dr. Petrylak further describes the design, execution, and results of the clinical trial that led to the drug’s approval, as well as notable side effects.

FDA Approves Pembrolizumab for New Indication of NMIBC

Posted by Daniel P. Petrylak, MD | Jan 2020

Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, discusses the recent FDA approval of the checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab for treating cystectomy-ineligible (or those who have refused cystectomy) non-muscle invasive bladder cancer patients who have also failed BCG. He details the prior lack of available treatment for this disease, explains the function of the drug as a checkpoint inhibitor, and describes the study that led to the drug’s approval.

ESMO: Astellas, Seattle Genetics’ Keytruda Combo Shrinks 71% of Bladder Cancers

Posted by Daniel P. Petrylak, MD | Dec 2019

E. David Crawford, MD, interviews Daniel P. Petrylak, MD, about a Phase 1b trial of cisplatin-ineligible bladder cancer patients given a combination of pembrolizumab and enfortumab vedotin that resulted in a 71% response rate. Dr. Petrylak details what makes a patient cisplatin-ineligible, discusses the partial and complete responses to the drug combination, and lays out future plans to study the efficacy of this therapy in the treatment of urothelial cancer.