Testosterone check after Radiation and lupron

Posted by borudds @borudds, Oct 6, 2020

I am 73 and am ( was ) in good shape. Worked our pretty hard 6 days/ wk. for over 40 years. I had been on TRT for approx.18 months with a T level between 490 and 510 the past year. I was diagnosed with prostate cancer via a prostate biopsy in Feb. of '20. Prostate biopsy had 1 positive out of 12. It was a 3+3 Gleason score of 6. I had a 16 week Lupron injection on April 14th and started 39 radiation treatments on June 10. I had a 12 week Lupron injection on Aug. 4 and the last radiation treatment of Aug.5. My nuclear bone scan, Prostate MRI, Spine MRI and Pelvis/Abdomen CT scan were all negative. I just had my first follow up blood work last week. My PSA was 20 and it is now .2. My medical oncologist gave me orders for my next PSA in 6 months and said that my next Lupron ( 12 week ) shot on Oct. 27 will be the last one. He originally indicated I would be on Lupron for 18 months but this will just get me to 40 weeks. ( fine with me ) My question concerns the fact that he told me he doesn't believe there is any need to check my testosterone level. I thought that was the key reason for the Lupron injections. Has anyone else gone through this process without knowing what your testosterone level has become?

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@kujhawk1978

Throw the BS penalty flag on your oncologist.

If you are on treatment, particularly ADT, you want to know PSA and T.

Generally, the lower your T, the better your response. Long ago and far away less than 50 was the standard, only because that’s as low as they could measure. Now, less than 20, while on ADT for 18 months mine was <7.

I don’t know about your clinical history or status so not in a position to comment but after surgery, BCR, SRT, six cycles of taxotere, 25 more radiation treatments to the pelvic lymph nodes and 18 months of Lupron we stopped treatment and I have been off treatment since August 2018. T recovered to 135 after two months, 482 by six months.

I have no doubt I will go back on treatment at some point in the future, just not now!

Also, it doesn’t cost your oncologist anything to order the T test so stand your ground.

When making decisions it is important to have clinical data, T is part of that.

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I would coordinate the tests through my Urologist.

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Can I ask where you're having treatment?

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At Mayo MN when they confirmed that I had Prostate Cancer my first stop after talking with the Radiation Oncologist was to get the 3 month Lupron Shot.. 2 months after that shot my Radiation Started ..From the Lupron site: "Lupron is a type of hormone therapy for prostate cancer. It works by lowering the amount of testosterone in a person's body, which helps slow the growth of cancer cells. Doctors often prescribe hormone therapies in combination with radiation therapy or following surgery. Feb 18, 2019" It makes sense to me that getting more Testosterone is feeding the tendency to get Prostate Cancer .. There is a balancing act here and certainly it is your life ... but who knows more about success rates from prostate cancer than your Oncology Doctors.. They are part of the team to extend life.

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Or he is a tea drinker who has a sense of humor.

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