Guest guest Posted September 23, 2004 Report Share Posted September 23, 2004 Rip -- I've never heard of the six month protocol your doctor apparently intends to use. There are protocols in which eight months or twelve months of continuous androgen deprivation is followed by an off-period, but these protocols depend on the patient reaching certain parameters. The intermittent androgen deprivation regimen described in the Primer calls for the use of three agents, not just one, and indicates that testosterone should be castrate at less than 20 ng/dl and PSA undetectable at 0.05 or less for twelve months, at which time the LHRH agonist (most commonly Lupron or Zoladex) and the anti-androgen (Casodex or Eulexin) are discontinued. The patient remains on the third agent (Proscar or Avodart) during the off-phase until the testosterone levels resurge, the PSA rises to the target level pre-determined by the doctor and patient, and then the full treatment with the three agents is resumed. I think you have serious need of further self-education and need to have some serious discussion with your doctor on what protocol is likely to benefit you the most. Side effects of various types develop for each patient at various times and some never develop at all. But now that you know what they are, if you develop them you'll be aware that this is standard for the therapy you're on. Donna Pogliano Co-author of " A Primer on Prostate Cancer, The Empowered Patient's Guide " Lupron newbie > > > Hi Group > Just had my first dose of Lupron and thought I would join the group to > find out what to expect that my Doc didn't want to mention. Brief > history: I am 63, had a rad prost. in 92, had a rising psa in 93, > had radiation in 93, then a rising psa in 98 (very low but doubling > every four months), psa got to 2 in 00, then fell back to 1 over the > next three years, then started up a year ago and went from 1.8 to 4.2 > from May to Aug. Had my first 3 mo dose of Lupron yesterday and will > have another in Dec then cycle off and on. > Would appreciate any comments on what to expect in way of side effects. > Thanks > Rip Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 23, 2004 Report Share Posted September 23, 2004 Donna said: The intermittent androgen deprivation regimen described in the Primer calls for the use of three agents, not just one, I am curious. I am hearing more and more of men who are being prescribed just one agent rather than 2 or 3. This is happening with men being treated at centers of excellence and some of them have been switched from two or three agents to one. I am sure this is not just to save $ or to no longer line the pockets of the pharmas but I do not know the logic to this apparent switch in hormone therapy. Does anyone know the clinical reason for this? Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted September 23, 2004 Report Share Posted September 23, 2004 This is what I thought the logic might be. The dates your doctor switched correspond to the dates I started hearing more men going on a single agent. I think there might be a concern about side effects also but that is not grounded in any solid information. Kathy Re: Lupron newbie Kathy My Doc is very well respected in the med community and has been my Doc for 12 years now. I am a newbie to the use of Lupron, not to PCa. His comment when I inquired about the cassodex was that he wanted to keep it in reserve (He knows my ins would cover it). That there is some indication now that it does not perform what it is reputed to. This is a new approach for him in the last year or two. Prior it was to use two drugs in combination. Please do not pick at my words as they are as precise as I can recall. Rip > > Donna said: The intermittent androgen deprivation regimen described in > the Primer calls for the use of three agents, not just one, > > I am curious. I am hearing more and more of men who are being > prescribed just one agent rather than 2 or 3. This is happening with > men being treated at centers of excellence and some of them have been > switched from two or three agents to one. I am sure this is not just > to save $ or to no longer line the pockets of the pharmas but I do not > know the logic to this apparent switch in hormone therapy. Does anyone > know the clinical reason for this? > > Kathy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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