CHAARTED: ChemoHormonal Therapy Versus Androgen Ablation Randomized Trial for Extensive Disease in Prostate Cancer

RATIONALE: Androgens can cause the growth of prostate cancer cells. Androgen ablation therapy may stop the adrenal glands from making androgens. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as docetaxel, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells or by stopping them from dividing. It is not yet known whether androgen-ablation therapy is more effective with or without docetaxel in treating metastatic prostate cancer. PURPOSE: This randomized phase III trial is studying androgen-ablation therapy and chemotherapy to see how well they work compared to androgen-ablation therapy alone in treating patients with metastatic prostate cancer.