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What is the current position on the length of hormone treatment?
Prostate Cancer | Last Active: Jan 7 9:31am | Replies (46)Comment receiving replies
The information is a compilation of multiple sources including expert webinars and publications. Researchers deterined that 10 cycles is the sweet spot. Researchers then began subtracting cycles to see how many cycles they could reduce to avoid side effects - they agreed on 6 cycles.
All PC is different for each person. I was diagnosed Stage 4 De Novo. The PC went to my bones (i.e., spine, ribs, and pelvis). My doctor thinks a lot like Dr. Kwon. Hit the hell out of the PC up front with triplet therapy. I first was given 10 treatment of radiation to my spin and then 5 to the ribs. I started ADT and Darolutamide and then Chemotherapy. I finished 6 cycles and asked if I could have more. Because I had zero side effect to chemo and my blood was other worldly, and my PSA was dropping too slowly I did 10 cycles. After completing all 10 cycles my PSA dropped to 0.238. My PSA continued to drop post Chemo and is undetectable. For me, I wanted to kill as many micro metastases as possible. That was my choice and my journey. If my doctor would have let me have more cycles I probably would have done 12 cycles in total. I probably will have to continue on ADT and Darolutamide indefinitely. I am determined to live with this cancer and not die of it. I also eat a 70% plant based diet. I work every day and exercise.
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Fantastic! You are fighter and you have taken control of your disease and your health. I am in agreement with you and your doctors.
Generally, trials of new drugs/therapies in the Phase 1, 2 & 3 trials are given first to those individuals with more advances disease that have limited options and expected survival. The efficacy of treatment, dosages and side effects are evaluated. If the treatment looks promising the new drug/treatments are then tried on patients with less advanced disease and so forth.
Some researchers/progressive MO or RO may realize that certain drugs or combinations may be efficacious but have not yet become SOC because incorporation into everyday practice takes publication of successful Phase 3 trials, FDA approval of drugs and acceptance by the medical community. These changes take years. Meanwhile, my cancer is marching forward.
I wanted a treatment team that was on the forefront. It made sense to me also to hit the cancer at an earlier stage with everything but the kitchen sink to try and kill as many micro metastases as possible (maybe all??!!). I was willing to endure some pain and discomfort in the short term for long term gain. After my PSA rapidly doubled following RP and SBRT for a single met to T8, I searched the literature and came upon an article from Johns Hopkins titled "Total Eradication Therapy". That sounded like what I was looking for. I found a match with the MO team there and they immediately started the triple therapy followed by pelvic radiation to kill residual cancer in the nodes and prostate bed. They also weigh the quality of life against reward and believe in intermittent ADT therapy if the PSA is undetectable. Should my PSA go back up and PMSA PET reveal additional bone/nodal disease, the primary treatment will be radiation/SBRT as this has a high likelihood of killing focal tumor.
I am cautiously hopeful. As I was diagnosed at a somewhat later age, 68, a win for me would be if I could get 10-15 years more of quality life. A agree with someone that said we are the guinea pigs in this rapidly changing landscape of prostate cancer treatment. I really believe that one day in the not too distant future this will become a chronic condition instead of a death sentence for some with advanced disease. As prostate cancer is such a prevalent cancer in men, a lot of research time and money is being allocated to finding a cure. It reminds me of HIV/AIDS. When I was finishing my medical training in the early 80s, AIDS was emerging as a devastating new disease with no known cause, no treatment and almost universally fatal. After decades of intensive research and many drug trials, they identified the virus and now have very effective treatments that have, if not cured the disease, rendered the virus undetectable as long as the person adheres to the treatment regimen. I am hopeful the same will happen for many cancers, including prostate.
Sorry for the rambling. Sometimes it helps to "talk" about the disease and treatments. It makes me feel I have some control over a disease that has significantly impacted my life.
Good luck to everyone as we continue on this journey. It is always informative to hear other men's experiences.