Zometa

[Devtony]

Anyone tried this. They tell me it's a monthly infusion for a year.

[Hidden]

I've had one infusion so far with no side effects. I'm about to start getting it every 12 weeks which has been found to be just as effective as every 4 weeks:

am.asco.org/zoledronic-acid...

Getting it less often reduces the risk of ONJ (Osteonecrosis of the Jaw) which is a serious condition. Something to discuss with your doctor.

[pjoshea13 in reply to Hidden]

Bisphosphonates have a long, long half life. One oncologist (who was treating my wife) downplayed the ONJ issue, but advised delaying major dental work (by which he meant mostly extractions) for 3 months after stopping the drug, & to delay resumption for a further 3 months after completion of the work.

My dentist, on the other hand, said that the stuff is there forever & the risk never quite goes away. Anyway, if there is an infection handle it with antibiotics & put off invasive work for as long as you can.

PubMed has 165 hits for <prostate Osteonecrosis jaw>:

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?te...

& if ONJ does occur, search very carefully for someone qualified to treat it.

-Patrick

Note that ONJ can also occur with Xgeva.

[Hidden in reply to pjoshea13]

My oncologist claimed the risk of ONJ is actually greater with Xgeva although from what I've seen the difference is minimal at best.

[Schwah]

Yes there are ONJ risks with Zometa but less so on the lower doses. My email oncologist who (with his two partners) does nothing but Prostate oncology was finding about 5% of his patients had issues. He reduced the dosage and that’s now down to 1%. However If you are taking Zometa ask your dr about the latest info from the Stampede trial and if you should add Celebrex to your meds:

“ The no-brainer here is Zometa+Celebrex. As long as the patient doesn't have contraindications like heart disease or bad teeth, it is cheap, non-toxic, and reduced risk of death by 22% at the 43 month follow-up. Zometa is usually given along with ADT anyway, so it is hard to argue against including this combination along with Zytiga or docetaxel.”

[cesanon in reply to Schwah]

Schwah

Have you been subjectively satisfied with the Zometa+Celebrex combination over the last year?

Are/were you taking it along with androgen deprivation therapy?

May I ask what the reduced Zometa dosage was that your doc used?

[Schwah in reply to cesanon]

Hi my friehd. Zometa scared me a bit because of the 2-3% side affect of jaw issues. My MO (dr Scholz ) said because of that side affect he uses about a 70% dosage with a fill Celebrex dosage. No real side affect and I think the Celebrex keeps my joints pretty little lubricated. I was doing it with my Lupron and Zytega which I am vacationing from for the past couple of weeks. I plan on continuing. Only other side affect is a sore butt at the shot location for a few days and a little sluggish for a few days after. Not sure if it’s real or in my mind because it’s pretty minor. As to if I’m satisfied , I suppose since minor side affects to date and another proven tool to help my odds. That and metformin are all in on now.

How about you. What’s you plan?

Schwah

[Tall_Allen]

Be sure to ask for a scrip for Celebrex with it. The combination of the two has been proven to increase survival by 22%.

[MelaniePaul]

Yes, my husband was on it for two or three years. The experience was good. It is true, though, that it affects your teeth and makes them less strong. Mel.

[DenDoc]

I was on Zometa for almost 10 years. I got it every 6months as a preventive for osteoporosis since I was on ADT continuously. No problems with ONJ which is well covered here but I have no underlying dental issues.

I did experience a rather painful bone aching 2-4 days after each dose. It felt like influenza and cleared in 8-12 hours with Ibuprofen. The first reaction was so strong I ended up in an ER to manage the pain. None like that later but never an infusion without some reaction.

[Scruffybut1]

Only had it as part of my chemo schedule. 24 infusions with 24 of chemo. It's a Bisphosphonate and these can cause problems re dental work post chemo. As I still have.

[ctarleton]

I had a very high PSA of 5,006 with LOTS of bone mets, and my oncologist gave me Zometa IVs every month for about 29 months, along with my Lupron. No problems or side effects. I thereafter insisted on toning it down to only a few times per year, and probably retain enough of it in my body to last the rest of my lifetime. There's not a lot of clinical trial data on such things for either Zometa (zoledronic acid) or Xgeva (denosumab) beyond the 3 year mark. I still get some Zometa after 4.5 years of overall survival. In hindsight, I could probably have done it only every 12-16 weeks with comparable results. Over a few years time, the slow accumulative quality-of-life impacts due to more appointments, prior lab tests, scores of needle sticks, and all those IV insertions could have been reduced by roughly two thirds. (On the other hand, I may have had fewer and less frequent PSA tests, which I typically got on a similar cycle since I was already getting "poked" anyway. There are individualistic pros and cons for getting /thinking about more or less frequent PSA scans, too, particularly at first, and during times of transition between major treatment Option changes.)

Charles

[Devtony]

Thanks for all the comments, found them very helpful. I now have neuropathy from the taxotere cycles. Have it in hands and feet which makes a lot of things difficult.