Update
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From: Dale P on 10 Jul 2008 12:44 In the recent "deciding not to treat pc" thread, Steve Kramer mentioned many of the people who have participated here. I am giving an update, as he did not have any info on me since 2006. I am DP or Dale P, as I have used both names in the past. Anyway, my PSA has gone up when I was off of ADT. I have been on Lupron/Casodex for the last three years. I recently went off of the Lupron and continue the low dose (50MG per day) Casodex for now. The testosterone level has not come up much after all of the years on Lupron. Anyway, the PSA is still <0.10, but has not been checked since April. I will go in for a check in a week. It sure feels good to be off the Lupron, as now the hot flashes are pretty much gone and the energy level is much better. It is interesting when you consider that the testosterone has not really come up much. Maybe every little bit helps, or maybe the Lupron has more overall effect than we realize. Anyway, life is going on well, and I know that someday this monster will raise its ugly head again, but until then life goes on. Hello to Steve and all of you others who I have not communicated with in some time. Dale P (DP) Denver, CO
From: Alan Meyer on 10 Jul 2008 19:04 On Jul 10, 12:44 pm, "Dale P" <da...(a)yahoo.com> wrote: > In the recent "deciding not to treat pc" thread, Steve Kramer > mentioned many of the people who have participated here. I am > giving an update, as he did not have any info on me since 2006. > I am DP or Dale P, as I have used both names in the past. > Anyway, my PSA has gone up when I was off of ADT. I have been > on Lupron/Casodex for the last three years. I recently went > off of the Lupron and continue the low dose (50MG per day) > Casodex for now. The testosterone level has not come up much > after all of the years on Lupron. Anyway, the PSA is still > <0.10, but has not been checked since April. I will go in for a > check in a week. It sure feels good to be off the Lupron, as > now the hot flashes are pretty much gone and the energy level > is much better. It is interesting when you consider that the > testosterone has not really come up much. Maybe every little > bit helps, or maybe the Lupron has more overall effect than we > realize. Anyway, life is going on well, and I know that > someday this monster will raise its ugly head again, but until > then life goes on. > > Hello to Steve and all of you others who I have not > communicated with in some time. > > Dale P (DP) > > Denver, CO Hello Dale. I'm glad to hear that things are going so well. I had Lupron as an adjunct to my radiation therapy. Because I was part of a clinical trial, my PSA and testosterone levels were checked more frequently than usual. I don't remember the numbers, but I do recall that my testosterone level did not come back for a couple of months after the supposed end of Lupron treatment. It was about five months after the last 3-month Lupron injection that T began to return. I think by the end of six months however it was back in the normal range. PSA continued to stay low until about 9 months, when it came up. So it may be that your T level is already much higher than your last reading in April - explaining why you feel better. Your PSA may start to rise soon. Now for some medical information or misinformation. I'm not a doctor and am no kind of expert, so if you are interested in anything I say below, you should check it with your doctor or some other genuine expert. ---Begin inexpert medical info--- In spite of what I said above, it's also possible that your PSA will not rise. As I understand it, the Casodex you are taking does not suppress testosterone. Your T level should fully recover in spite of the Casodex. What Casodex does is block the uptake of testosterone by the prostate cells. You still have T in your bloodstream, but your tumor cells can't get as much of it as they would without Casodex. So, if this works out for you, you may get the best of both worlds - normal T level and very little tumor growth. Casodex is not usually used as a monotherapy in the U.S. (though it is in some other countries) because (again, as I understand it) it is thought that high dose levels (150 mg/day) are needed to fully block T uptake, and the side effects of that are potentially worse or more dangerous than the side effects of Lupron, at least for some men. But drugs affect different people differently. It may be that for your specific body and your specific disease, 50 mg will be all you need for a long, long time. ---End inexpert medical info--- At any rate, your overall response to hormone therapy seems very encouraging. Best of luck with it. Alan
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