Alcohol and Radiation Treatment

I stopped alcohol during SBRT and all but abstained for the 6 months I was on Orgovyx. I am no teetotaler, (after all I did spend 68 years in Wisconsin) but I figured my body had enough to deal with without my dumping ethanol down my gullet.

I think that it would be better to refrain from alcohol during treatment since liver will have to work overtime to remove all kind of toxins from your body but otherwise here is an interesting tidbit that I found :
"A more recent study published in June 2019 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology on Alcohol Intake and Risk of Lethal Prostate Cancer found that drinking alcohol may be a risk reducer for prostate cancer. Comparing cancer-free alcohol users and non-users, the study found that the risk of prostate cancer was lower in drinkers than in non-drinkers. And for men who already were suffering from prostate cancer, moderate use of red wine helped slow the progression of the disease. The researchers hailed from these institutions: Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA; Brigham Women's Hospital in Boston; Harvard Medical School in Boston; and University of California in San Francisco, CA."
from this article : https://www.compassoncology.com/blog/alcohol-and-prostate-cancer

Maybe stick with wine IF you can not skip alcohol altogether during treatment, BUT it would be better not to take any IMHO.

Wishing you great success in PC eradication and complete and forever healing 🙂🍀🍀🍀 !

I have no problem abstaining, though when we are out to a nice dinner I do enjoy a cocktail. I should have asked my RO or his NP. I am scheduled for my simulation and first Lupron injection this week and RT to start the week following.

My husband has had his usual two glasses of wine in the evening through every round of SBRT and other radiation treatments, which have been at Mayo Rochester since 2011. No ill effects or indeed anything noticeable at all. No one there ever cautioned us about alcohol during treatment, or even mentioned alcohol in the first place.

My experience during my 69 radiation treatments...

SRT
WPLN
SBRT

I did not abstain...

During SRT my radiologist mentioned abstaining from coffee and alcohol. The other two times, nothing mentioned.

I'm guessing the SRT had to do with concerns for the bladder though beyond this layman's understanding.

My labs never indicated a problem with kidney functioning.

There is of course quite a bit of discussion about alcohol in general,

My take, discuss with his medical team but for me, all things in moderation.

Kevin

Agree - none is better during treatment, but a glass of wine won’t make much of a difference…
I do, however, strongly disagree with the results of those studies suggesting that moderate drinking can reduce the risk or progression of PCa.
Only in the last year have we REALLY been informed of just how bad drinking is. The Canadian study about 18 months ago came to the conclusion that men should have no more than 2 drinks per week, and women none!
I used to have two drinks per day as ‘moderate’ drinking was shown to be beneficial - even for diabetics!! I decided to quit cold turkey when a routine blood test showed me to be ‘pre-diabetic’. After ceasing all alcohol my glucose dropped to 84 from 100.
For years the liquor industry has funded studies with fudged results to boost sales…no longer.
If you find this hard to believe, I urge you to read the book NO MORE TEARS - a scathing expose’ of Johnson&Johnson - the most admired company in the world.
Their crimes, greed for profit above all else, carelessness and downright illegal business practices will make your skin crawl. They have literally killed millions of people by the author’s reckoning. The list of dangerous drugs, medical devices, surgical implants and others is too long to mention here.
Yet their CEO’s stand beside US Presidents and heads of State as if they were Saints, Kings or demi-gods.
Seriously, a must read for anyone who wishes to see the dark underbelly of public health, politics, power and greed and how they have brought us to where we are today.
Phil

My reading (on the internet of course) suggests that it is becoming a common opinion among medical doctors that alcohol is a toxin, and that we might do best to avoid it altogether. Of course there are other articles touting its healthy benefits. Perhaps you might let your body tell you after the buzz…

I’m getting more adept at ordering virgin cocktails … 😉

People who want to use alcohol to get high will always find a “study” that shows alcohol use to be “healthy “. Alcohol is a toxin. The high is your body’s initial reaction to that toxin. The hangover (whether minor from a “few” drinks or major from getting drunk) is your body trying to get rid of the toxin. None of this is healthy and certainly not beneficial for someone battling cancer. If you enjoy drinking in moderation, enjoy. But, you are not doing yourself anything good.

Cheers to your hubby! I partake in wine(about 2 glasses) 4 days a week. Same here too, no mention from my doc about avoiding it. I say, CHEERS! 🙂