I have looked on your profile and no details there of your treatment journey thus far. Are you on Hormone Treatment and have you had any other treatment such as radiotherapy or prostate removal? Hormone Treatment can cause fatigue so wondering if you are on HT? If so how long have you been on the treatment and how long is it going to continue? I found the best way to deal with this was to keep as active as I could - which I did all the way through my Hormone Treatment and Radiotherapy going to the gym circuit training at least 3 days a week, and going for walks or swimming on the other days. Having said that I often then sat down after lunch and had a nap of about an hour. I was goign through this treatment at 73 - 74 and now at nearly 77 I find I am napping after lunch again but still going to the gym but every day now for a shorter period maybe only half to three quarters of an hour. Doing this has also minimised the muscle loss from the Hormone Treatment too.
Hi I also struggle with extreme fatigue, I’m 51 had prostratectomy last may, then chemo sept - jan 2020, I started hormone therapy in August so currently trying to determine whether after affects of chemo, affects of hormone therapy or just because during treatment I got too used to doing less and getting up later.
thanks for your replies but I thought I should add that I am undergoing zero treatment.
that is, no hormones, no radio therapy and no chemo nor brachytherapy'
literally nothing more than life itself and the odd painkiller.
whilst I have locally advanced prostate cancer with 15 out of 18 cores being a Gleason 9, I understand that the treatment for most of you has its own effects or symptoms.
without a single drug or treatment, I too am undergoing extreme fatigue which leads me to think that it must be the cancer rather than the treatment that causes it.
the palliative care nurses gave me some steroids which I tried and although they worked in that I could have happily jogged up mount Everest with a blacksmiths anvil in each pocket when I took them, they frightened me a bit because of my reaction to them.
and being tired already was enhanced by the fact that when I took them I could not sleep.
the tablets were called dexamethasone.
I am falling asleep at the drop of a hat and have the energy of a sloth and whatever small bit of energy I use, I am almost instantly falling asleep afterwards. even the smallest bit of energy used is completely sapping me.
I was wondering if perhaps yourselves or somebody may know of something not as strong as the steroids that I could take even if it is just something that worked for you I am willing to give it a try, it feels like I am living what is left in a tired stupor.
I have never taken steroids but my wife often does because of her asthma and nick names them "the devil's tic tacs" They frequently do keep you awake all night. Some people take them before sleep so that they don't keep them awake and they can get a few hours sleep before they kick in. It works for some but not for others. You should talk to your GP or cancer nurse as maybe just an adjustment in the dose could make a difference. There may well be some other medication that can help. What treatments have you had at all for the cancer? My brother-in-law has had a lot of chemo for a different cancer and still has fatigue problems 2 years after finishing chemo. He finds the best thing is to keep as active as you can and take frequent naps also frequent small meals instead of 3 large meals seem to help. It may also help if you have a full blood test as you may find you are deficient in some vitamins. Iron deficiency can also cause fatigue.
