ADT & Diet: What are others generally eating in a day?

Posted by anything4him @anything4him, Dec 11, 2025

Hi everyone! Wife here again looking for advice.

Short summary: Husband (60) had radical prostatectomy 2024, PSA bumped up again so just completed ERBT radiation and is now on Orgovyx, Abiterone, Prednisone. Very aggressive cancer. Treatments under a Center of Excellence. Rough road we are on but doing our best to stay positive.

I am struggling with breakfast. Yes, I stress over feeding him correctly!

Lunch & Dinner is no problem to get in a variety of veggies & healthy protein sources. But what are you eating for breakfast?

I’ve been rotating various egg & veggie combos and what I call loaded oatmeal- oats, a bit of almond butter, a scoop of plant protein, flax, nuts, seeds, raisins, dried apricots etc. Smoothies don’t keep him full for long which doesn’t work with his med schedule. Trying to keep him (us!) as healthy as possible and fill him with needed protein, iron, calcium etc.

Would love to hear what others are generally eating in a day. Thanks in advance for any yummy food suggestions!

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Profile picture for surftohealth88 @surftohealth88

Nutrition and diet are very important for cancer patients in many ways. I tend to believe that plant based diet is the best since most studies show that and our surgeon strongly suggested we stick with it and avoid any animal products. Luckily for us we both love veggies, fruits, grains , legumes, nuts etc etc.

My husband is not a breakfast person so I actually have to remind him to "eat something", although I tend to skip breakfast too. Our breakfast can be something as simple as banana lol , but most often it is oatmeal with plant based milk , some flax seed or hemp seed, dried strawberries, or other fresh or dried fruit, half tea spoon of coconut oil, some spices like cinnamon or allspice etc. etc. Some days it is whole wheat multigrain bread with vegetable based spreads or egg-less mayo and tomato slices, cucumber, pickled (anything) on top , or avocado spread etc etc. He also likes to drink tomato juice with his breakfast. My husband has no problem following his doctor's advice and actually our breakfast did not change much since PC diagnosis, we were never eating substantial breakfasts.

Lunch and dinner are also vegetable based - stews, salads with grilled fish or small portion of skinless chicken , we try to have meatless meals at least twice a week and honestly we do enjoy our veggie based food immensely. My husband is full of energy , works 3 jobs and is in top shape and actually never complains of "hunger", just too busy to feel it lol, I guess.

However , he is not on ADT but as much as I understood so far about ADT and muscle mass the most important thing for maintaining it is exercise ! Extra protein without exercise will not make a difference : (. If my husband is ever on ADT and was in a need of extra protein I would buy him organic plant based protein or organic grass fed whey with no artificial colors or artificial taste.

Hope this was of some help and wishing you and your husband all the best : )))

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@surftohealth88 I'm just the opposite. I could give up lunch, and even dinner, as long as I didn't lose breakfast.

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Profile picture for surftohealth88 @surftohealth88

@dogrocketp
Female version of "poster child here" - so I know exactly what you are talking about : ((( I can not take even OTC meds like NSAID-s , also no eye drops with any preservative, no cortisone or steroid of any kind , not even local use (like nose spray or eye drops) etc etc.

Do you think that perhaps radiation had more effect on your guts than ADT itself ? Or you think that main culprit is ADT : ( in your case ?

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@surftohealth88 It’s difficult to know, as I was sledgehammered by both. At this point, I’m looking forward to the end. And I do find 2 eggs and a single piece of white toast do the best in the morning. I also cut my portions 50% when all this started. The weight came anyway.

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I try to fast for 14-15 hours each day (then do a 3-day water or 5-day Prolon fast every 6-8 weeks). I think this helps keep the ADT weight off and provides other benefits.

I do something similar most days with the oatmeal - I make a tray for the week with organic steel cut and/or 5-grain, add a trio of frozen berries, flaxseed, sunflower seeds, walnuts, vegan vanilla protein powder & cinnamon. I look forward to eating a serving each day with a small banana.

I do alternate sometimes with chocolate smoothies. There is 25g of protein in the powder plus flax, greens, berries, almond butter, etc., so I find them filling.

To mix it up, I made have avocado, tomato & arugula toast on whole grain with some fruit. Maybe on a holiday - buckwheat pancakes with almond butter and maple syrup. I made Dr. Gregor's banana bread recently and it was delicious.

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I know that this an old tread, I hope your husband is doing well, I will tell you about what I eat, once I was diagnosed with metastatic PC Gleason 9 I realized that meds alone was not sufficient, so I read everything I could get my hands on, studies done, video from PCC Prostate cancer center, and a lot of studies specifically the one done by the university of San Francisco, indicated that a diet based on whole food mainly plant based, lots of fruits and vegetables, low fat and high fiber was promising. So I went from Paleo to vegan overnight, and now I follow a semi a low fat vegan diet but I incorporate salmon once a week, you said breakfast was your husband issue, as for me was not what I liked or disliked it’s all about what do I have to do to get my health back, I’m 74 for now and my breakfast is simple, oatmeal not too much, 1 scoop of organic pea protein, 2 tablespoons of Sacha incha ( protein) 2 tablespoons of hemp seeds, 1 tablespoon of psyllium, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of 7 mushrooms powder, 2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast, 1 scoop of egg shell powder, 1 scoop of fermented beet powder a few walnuts and a hand full of blueberries I have this a 9am 2 hours after all my meds, I’m good until 1 or 2 pm.
Lunch is usually cooked veggies from the night before, quinoa salad (quinoa, tomatoes, onions olives) or cooked lentils with cashew cream, dinner veggies, could be any vegetable mix, mushrooms and quinoa or very little white rice cooked the night before and refrigerate so it becomes a resistant starch and beans normally black beans with two tablespoons of hemp seeds, im learning how too cook vegan Indian food, has lots of vegetables and quality proteins, I snack on high fiber fruits, nuts and hummus
I hope this helps, I will keep you and your husband in my prayers

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Profile picture for zzotte @zzotte

I know that this an old tread, I hope your husband is doing well, I will tell you about what I eat, once I was diagnosed with metastatic PC Gleason 9 I realized that meds alone was not sufficient, so I read everything I could get my hands on, studies done, video from PCC Prostate cancer center, and a lot of studies specifically the one done by the university of San Francisco, indicated that a diet based on whole food mainly plant based, lots of fruits and vegetables, low fat and high fiber was promising. So I went from Paleo to vegan overnight, and now I follow a semi a low fat vegan diet but I incorporate salmon once a week, you said breakfast was your husband issue, as for me was not what I liked or disliked it’s all about what do I have to do to get my health back, I’m 74 for now and my breakfast is simple, oatmeal not too much, 1 scoop of organic pea protein, 2 tablespoons of Sacha incha ( protein) 2 tablespoons of hemp seeds, 1 tablespoon of psyllium, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of 7 mushrooms powder, 2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast, 1 scoop of egg shell powder, 1 scoop of fermented beet powder a few walnuts and a hand full of blueberries I have this a 9am 2 hours after all my meds, I’m good until 1 or 2 pm.
Lunch is usually cooked veggies from the night before, quinoa salad (quinoa, tomatoes, onions olives) or cooked lentils with cashew cream, dinner veggies, could be any vegetable mix, mushrooms and quinoa or very little white rice cooked the night before and refrigerate so it becomes a resistant starch and beans normally black beans with two tablespoons of hemp seeds, im learning how too cook vegan Indian food, has lots of vegetables and quality proteins, I snack on high fiber fruits, nuts and hummus
I hope this helps, I will keep you and your husband in my prayers

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@zzotte Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my older post. I think we have finally gotten the food plan down - a bit more difficult for him as he has other GI issues so all vegetables have to be cooked. He misses salads so much! Our oatmeal too has become quite loaded with those extra goodies.

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Profile picture for anything4him @anything4him

@zzotte Thank you so much for taking the time to respond to my older post. I think we have finally gotten the food plan down - a bit more difficult for him as he has other GI issues so all vegetables have to be cooked. He misses salads so much! Our oatmeal too has become quite loaded with those extra goodies.

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@anything4him you are very welcome

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My morning breakfast Mon- Fri is organic oatmeal cooked with some cinnamon. Then add chia seed , pumpkins seed, sunflower seed, walnuts and cacao nibs ( 100 percent dark chocolate) But we just came back from breakfast where I had eggs bacon sausage and even a pancake. Balance and life!!! Prayers your way today !

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I'm very fortunate not to have had the weight or food issues so far on ADT, but I might have something to contribute since you mentioned difficulty working in diet with food schedule. My ADT regimen is Orgovyx, abiraterone, and prednisone. Orgovyx can be taken any time. Prednisone must go with food - no problem, I just have to remember it over breakfast. The only issue is the abbie. which needs an empty stomach before and after. I deal with that by taking it in the middle of the night, when I (and maybe your husband) reliably get awakened by a hot flash and/or need to get up and pee. That takes the one med scheduling issue off the table.

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Profile picture for guybe @guybe

I'm very fortunate not to have had the weight or food issues so far on ADT, but I might have something to contribute since you mentioned difficulty working in diet with food schedule. My ADT regimen is Orgovyx, abiraterone, and prednisone. Orgovyx can be taken any time. Prednisone must go with food - no problem, I just have to remember it over breakfast. The only issue is the abbie. which needs an empty stomach before and after. I deal with that by taking it in the middle of the night, when I (and maybe your husband) reliably get awakened by a hot flash and/or need to get up and pee. That takes the one med scheduling issue off the table.

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@guybe
Hi All,
I have been reading these diet stories and am still perplexed on my main issue--how to get enough protein?
Google says a 170-pound 72-year old active man should get "about 77 to 93 grams of protein per day...If he’s doing regular endurance or resistance exercise [I am], the target can be a bit higher, around 85 to 115 grams per day."
My problem is I am trying to keep on a whole food, plant based diet, or as I told my friend: "It's simple, anything you want to eat, you can't. No dairy, meat, eggs, or sugar." So good sources of large amounts of protein (eggs, yogurt, meat) are off the table, or at least minimized. When I look at labels for beans, flaxseed, nuts seeds, etc. I see mostly 5, 6, 8 grams of protein/serving. I just dont see how to get to 85 to 115 grams/day with these numbers. To be honest, I eat a lot of salmon and tuna and occasional skinless organic chicken, but even with those, meeting the targets seems a stretch. How do you all do it?

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Profile picture for bikeman1 @bikeman1

@guybe
Hi All,
I have been reading these diet stories and am still perplexed on my main issue--how to get enough protein?
Google says a 170-pound 72-year old active man should get "about 77 to 93 grams of protein per day...If he’s doing regular endurance or resistance exercise [I am], the target can be a bit higher, around 85 to 115 grams per day."
My problem is I am trying to keep on a whole food, plant based diet, or as I told my friend: "It's simple, anything you want to eat, you can't. No dairy, meat, eggs, or sugar." So good sources of large amounts of protein (eggs, yogurt, meat) are off the table, or at least minimized. When I look at labels for beans, flaxseed, nuts seeds, etc. I see mostly 5, 6, 8 grams of protein/serving. I just dont see how to get to 85 to 115 grams/day with these numbers. To be honest, I eat a lot of salmon and tuna and occasional skinless organic chicken, but even with those, meeting the targets seems a stretch. How do you all do it?

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@bikeman1 If you're willing to relax your ban on dairy, whey powder is an extremely efficient non-meat protein source: 26 grams per two-scoop serving, for what I use. I add it to 12 ounces of milk (plus creatine) for a quick 38 grams of protein after a workout. Given the amount of exercise we need to keep muscle mass while on ADT, and the additional protein required to support that, I think some "cheating" on a vegan or plant-based diet might be worth it to stay topped-up - if you can fit that within your dietary principles.

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