My father experiences muscle atrophy. His whole life he was skinny (he can eat whatever he liks but never gains weight), but had muscles. Now that summer is coming and he is wearing short sleaves, I noticed his arms and chest became very weak.
He was diagnosed in September 2016 after TURP procedure. PSA 5.2, Gleason 4+3 = 7, cancer in 10% of tissue, stage T1b. He is on Casodex 50mg only (only first e to 4 months Casodex 150mg), but had quite some side effects (fatigue, sensitvity to sun, changes in blood pressure etc). His current PSA is 0.6 but doctors do not seem worried. Next appointment is in November.
I don't know if his muscle atrophy can be caused by this relatively low dose casodex monotheraphy. He eats normally (so a lot), but is much less active. He is 76 years old.
Have you experienced muscle atrophy and how do you fight it?
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MyDad76
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Yes weights are needed they don’t need to be big start with 5 or 10 pound hand weights Maybe several sets so he can just pick them up whenever during the day and swing them around for starters
No. We have public health system only (yes, no private health care). Based on his age and pathology findings they determined that he is unlikely to die from PC. So they used the cheapest treatment - bicalutamide.
If he has other problems (e.g., heart disease, diabetes, etc.) that might make sense. But a 76 y.o. man in good health can live another 20 years. Ageism is pervasive in the medical community.
If he doesn't want to face a public gym he can work out at home on core strength. Sit-ups for his abdomen. Wrist weights for upper strength and mobility. Lying on back and raising legs with wrist weights on ankles. On back raising arms . I boxed, played rugby, soccer and ran miles cross country never developing big arm muscles. Didn't need them. Now my hips and knees are 'dead'. ADT has eaten the cartilage, walking difficult and painful but my dog needs around 5 miles daily. I exercise as listed above and wait for next week's NM whole body scan (my third) to see if I am suitable for surgical replacements. Am 72. If I am I am. No worries.
Wrist weights are essential for gradual muscle development in given health conditions. And probably it's the only in the case of muscle atrophy. If I were you I'd studied the whole web in search of the exercises and different types of weights. So far I've found this guide to be quite detailed, it contains all the info on ankle weights besthealthgear.com/best-wri....
It is my understanding that ADT reduces the number of mitochondria (the organelles inside the cells that generate usable energy carriers (ATP) by processing food molecules) in muscles. The result is weakness and tiredness. There are some experimental treatments that might possibly help, but the clearly well established treatment that is definitely known to help is exercise.
I recommend both resistance exercises (weights, pushups, situps, isometrics, etc.) and cardio-vascular exercises (walking, jogging, swimming, etc.) With exercise he may still be weaker and have less energy than before his treatment, but he will probably be a lot stronger and more vigorous than he is now. His life will be more normal.
Thank you! He does walk dialy, but that is about it. Will try to get him do also resistance training. I'm also getting MRI of prostate and pelvic area to exclude that something more sinister is behind it.
Casodex monotherapy will actually increase testosterone as it blocks it to the pc so working out should be no problem to keep muscle and bone toned which is the best medicine for pc. Rocco
My husband is experiencing the same (muscle atrophy and fatigue), your dad MUST exercise it WILL help w/the fatigue. Weights will rebuild the muscles, and perhaps he might consider swimming, the pool is an amazing way to increase stamina and muscle building. He should also increase his protein intake. I personally have the same issue as your dad (as far as eating anything and not gaining weight... it's rough) and I have found the only way for me to gain weight is by building muscle. For my husband, I have found that taking "Estroven Maximum Strength +Energy" has really helped. It is an over the counter supplement that is usually for women BUT we have found it really helps the hubby.
Bone density and muscle mass loss are predictable side effects of ADT therapy. I see a physical therapist monthly and she tests to see how I am doing and recommends exercises to help specific muscle groups. She also teaches exercises to reduce the risk of falling and breaking bones weakened by bone density los. Last fall I was part of study to see if a certain supplement helped reduce muscle mass loss. I was in the control group that did not take the supplement. I was told that I did better than both groups... probably due to the workouts suggested by the physical therapists. I also try to walk at least 5000 steps a day...roughly 2.5 Miles. I old encourage you to have your dad evaluated by a physical
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