Flare with ADT

[deano58]

Does anyone know whether the "flare" in testosterone is associated with the very first initial shot of Lucrin ( or Lupron ) only, or can it occur at every subsequent shot?

Cheers

[cfrees1]

My understanding is that it is only the first one. After that, your testosterone will be so low that even if there is a slight flare, it won't have much effect. It takes a while (weeks or even months) for testosterone to bounce back from castrate resistant levels so that's why if you miss a shot by a week or you forget a dose of Casodex etc. is ok.

[deano58 in reply to cfrees1]

Thanks for the info cfrees1.

[Tall_Allen]

While Lupron keeps stimulating GnRH, after the first week or two the stimulation loses to the testicular shutdown.

[deano58 in reply to Tall_Allen]

Thanks Tall Allen. That makes perfect sense.

[Joeym1040]

I was always given casodex a week or two before the first shot to control flare. Seemed to work

[deano58 in reply to Joeym1040]

Thanks for your reply joeym1040.

I've just had my 6th shot (4 monthly).

Because my MO wanted to see me in 4 months instead of 3 months as previously,

and i always had a PSA test just before the appointment, this time i had my shot 2 weeks before my PSA. test .( if that makes sense!) But Tall Allen and cfrees1's answers have put

my mind at ease.

[Joeym1040]

Tall Allen is the man! Good luck!!!

[deano58]

Thank you

[William123Cooper123]

I have been on Lupron for 7 years (3 months depot). There may not be a repeated testosterone flare after each implant, but other issues:

• One or two days after each injection (generally) a surge of cognitive confusion and fatigue ... of feeling like hell. (Lupron chemical concentrate leaks into the liquid medium holding the injectable polymer impregnated spheres.)

• Reoccurring cycles of side-effects during the three months (cognitive fog and fatigue) lasting 4 – 6 days. Then 4 days of generally “feeling good.” Repeated throughout the 3 months, for each treatment. (The NCCN in their latest publications (2017, etc.) report that ADT side-effects over long periods of time become worse as they tend to be cumulative.)

—————

At first I thought I was over reacting? A wimp? But throughout the 7 years, the cycle regularly appears, sometimes minor, sometimes bad. I deal with them by keeping as busy as possible ... with the consolation that the “bad” (cycles) is from the Lupron, and not the actual cancer.

——————

For some Lupron is hardly an issue, and for others, Lupron is a factor in the decimation of their Quality-of-Life. (For me ... all things considered ... Lupron is hell, but can smile knowing that Lupron is keeping the cancer “hibernating.”)