@stage4lovolmetpc
You have to realize that prostate cancer today is not a deadly disease. It is a chronic disease. With the right drugs, even a Gleason eight can live for 10, 20, or 30 years. I know people that are Gleason nine that have lived 30 years before reoccurrence others 20 years.

I’m 78 and I’ve been on ADT since I was 70. I do get warm flashes a few times a day and have some brain fog as a result of the drug but you would never know I had prostate cancer for 16 years if you met me. I do run on a track twice a day a mile and go to the gym three times a week and spend an hour working on my muscles. I get bone strengtheners every three months. All of this keeps me so that I have been undetectable for the last 27 months even though I’ve had four reoccurrences.

Then you take the side of not being treated. You may live a long time or you may have the cancer spread to your bones and become painful. My father had radiation as his first treatment, but I remember the day he told me Lupron stopped working. He died of prostate cancer in extreme pain, Unable to communicate because he Had to take so much morphine for the pain. This was a guy who had his teeth ground down and crowned without Novacaine and came home at night and had dinner with us.

You could easily live another 20 years with prostate cancer as long as you get it treated and keep up with the recommended drugs. I’ve had surgery followed by radiation 3 1/2 years later, followed by Lupron 2 1/2 years after that and more drugs that have worked well. I have the genetic problems of BRCA2, which causes my cancer to keep coming back, but I’m still around.

As far as ED goes There are a number of solutions. You can get an implant that gives you an erection, They are very popular. You can get injections that allow you to get an erection for an hour or two, More than enough time.

I don’t know what you mean by wear a diaper. Most people have no incontinence after radiation. You can get a barrier like SpaceOAR, Barrigel, or BioProtect to protect your rectum from damage during radiation. Six years after radiation, I Started to have incontinence problems, which over the years have gotten worse. Never had to wear a diaper, wear a pad. I’m going to get an AUS (Artificial urinary sphincter) Installed in April, which will give me full continent back. That’s not the only device that works to do it.

The pill form of ADT is not something that you can just stop and everything comes back to normal right away. You will not feel it until your testosterone level gets very low, If you stop the pill at that point, it can take 2 to 6 months before things come back to normal. Of course, that can also cause your cancer to become more aggressive, What’s your preference?