Arthritis upswing after radiation: Is this common?

Paul - I have heard of soem guys saying they have had sore joints after Salvage radiation ( EBRT) . I had 22 sessions of Salvage radiation and I didnt notice any joint pain. Only 62 now though , and 59 when I got the 22 session of radiation. God Bless Sir . James on Vancouver Island .

I had pre-existing hallux rigidus (pronounced arthritis of the big toe joint) prior to prostatectomy at age 65 followed by salvage radiation (49 treatments) along with 2 years of ADT (abiraterone and Lupron). During the second year of ADT, the big toe became much worse, and my hips have stiffened up quite a bit. I also developed bilateral neuropathy of the legs. I ended treatment in October and have not noticed much improvement in arthritis symptoms. The neuropathy is getting slowly better. Orthopedic surgeon will operate on foot in the winter, but I’m still working on regaining strength following ADT, so we’ll see. Biking, swimming, PT, and yoga all help with arthritis and neuropathy. I’m also walking and doing weights to improve osteoporosis. The second year of ADT was pretty miserable, but I was in good condition prior to this journey, and my T levels are back to normal now. Even with the current pains and deficits, I’m very happy to be my old self.

Hi Nick, looks like you made it though the tough parts of Lupron and ADT. Congrats. Great that your T has come back as well.
I’m 81 and feel I’ve got to do a lot more exercises to get back to my old self, and T recovery, but very glad that you have accomplished so much.

@paulvt, given your undetectable PSA, I'm guessing you're on ADT.

I believe it's the ADT that makes arthritis worse. That's just my lay opinion based on my experience and not on any particular research study.

I'm 72 and after one year ADT (Orgovyx) I developed trigger finger on the middle finger of both hands. Arthritis stiffness also steadily worsened. It began about 6 months after starting ADT and slowly worsened over many months. Nowadays, arthritis feels especially bad in my right hand, but at least it doesn't seem to be getting worse.

I consulted a hand specialist and got some temporary relief with cortisone injections. The doctor said I should consider a simple out-patient surgery to relieve the trigger fingers.

Hot water & massage & range-of-motion exercises seem to help. Sadly, too much keyboard activity seems to make my fingers unpleasantly stiffer.

I've only been off ADT for 3 months, so I'm hoping my hands will improve in the coming months. At least for now, the arthritis isn't getting any worse.

All that said, I have no regrets with ADT. Combined with HDR Brachytherapy + 5 sessions SBRT for my Stage 2 Gleason 9 (4+5) prostate cancer, my PSA went from 31 to undetectable (< 0.01).

And now, 3 months after stopping ADT, my PSA is still very low (0.14). And at 432, my testosterone has almost fully recovered (454 prior to treatments).

Best of all, I feel great. Except for my hand problems, my overall sense of well-being is at least as good as prior to treatments.

Thanks retired boomer,
I too have had hand arthritis occur as a result of Lupron ADT . It does abate after waking up with stiffness in fingers .
That was nonexistent before Lupron ADT.
No one in my interactions with my oncology Doctors ever mentioned these side effects or dramatic increases in existing arthritis. That’s why I initiated these conversations to see if others experiences mimicked mine.