HT - injections

Hi Bear , I would think very carefully about going against medical advice.  I have known people refuse treatment at the start who have gone on to regret their actions.

The use of HT has been refined over the years and I presume as an ‘average’ the guidelines are aiming to give best chance with least impact.  If you come off treatment then let’s hope you are lucky.  There are no guarantees that staying on meds for a year is the best solution, but to me (9 years on HT) I wouldn’t take the risk.

Hello Bear 

We are all different but to me the one thing we do need to do on this journey of ours is stick with the medical advice we are given.

I have had 3 years HT - off it for 9 months - back on it for 9 months - off it again and my PSA is rising again - click on my name or avatar for the full story - BUT I am listening to the advice given.

No one wants to be on HT - but no one wants cancer either. You need to balance quality of life over possibly a much shorter life!

Best wishes - Brian

Hello Bear,

Unless I have missed it (not unusual), you haven't said how frequently the injections are given.  If they are every 6 months, it might be worth asking if your husband could switch to 3 monthly going forward. This would then give the option of reviewing how he's feeling more frequently.  

Before making any final decision about HT it's worthwhile speaking with your team to let them know how he's feeling & see what suggestions they may have to help.

Best wishes

Brian

Good morning Bear . I’m on HT for 3 years, currently 20 months in, and asked my oncologist why the 3 years and not 2 a couple of weeks ago.

She said the extra efficacy was a grey area still but she wanted to give it the best chance of working against any microscopic spread, I think mainly due to my lymph node involvement. I generally feel well with the occasional low-energy day, regular sweats, brain fog and weight gain (and a growing breast on one side only…) which I’m getting used to, and will be pushing through the next 16 months if I continue to feel this OK. If OK is the right description…! To me, possible minimal benefit is better than zero benefit going forwards - and I personally wouldn’t want to look back and wonder ‘what if’.

Stopping is a very personal decision and as David2017 says, would be against professional advice. Is it worth him asking about a change of drug, or 3-monthly injections maybe, see if the side-effects improve a little or making the decision for another 3 months is easier than 6?

When hormone therapy is combined with radiotherapy its called adjuvant hormone therapy and it can have a significant impact on the effectiveness of the treatment regime.

So it is worth persevering with it if at all possible. I know this is difficult when you are dealing with unpleasant side effects during treatment but the impact on clinical outcome is worth the cost in this case.

So try and stick wit hit if you can and definitely discuss any change with your healthcare team before making an unilateral changes to treatment.

Good Luck

Rob (Sandberg)

Hi Bear 

HT is hard, but some of the side effects can be mitigated. I am taking medroxyprogesterone to address my hot flushes, I've changed my diet to control the weight gain, and most importantly (in my view) I do resistance training to fight the fatigue. Unfortunately there is no fix for the lack of sex drive, but tadalifil does help with getting the plumbing working and prevents HT related atrophy.

If he doesn't already, I would highly recommend doing resistance training, It can definitely help him not feeling 90. 

Hope this helps 

G

You are  all so wonderful & compassionate thank you for the really informative messages 

yes injections are 3 monthly, I am hoping the latest one just appears worse as he’s still recovering from the Radiation & the fatigue from that 

Looking at weight training and ways to combat all the symptoms, the Menoforce  Sage is helping slightly with the hot flushes 

The oncologist did say it would be 18months for the HT and he’s a third of the way through 

thanks again 

Hi Bear

The thought of injections for long periods wasnt for me. Once its in its in. I instead had tablets thinking if I couldnt cope with side effects I could stop.

I had many and varied side effects one after another but no hot sweats so maybe everyone has they're own. Keep on its a long slog but diet i found the most important. Plenty protein and exercise 

Best

Tony

Radiotherapy definitely increases the fatigue, I had to take a few months off work due to fatigue after radiotherapy, but it does get better, hang in there.