Using Lupron for diagnostic tool????

[Rocketman1960]

Was wondering why you couldnt use a 1 month lupron injection for diagnostic testing for a guy who had a clean biopsy twice, had PSA going up and down over time around 10. I know its not SOC. but what is the harm in giving the injection and see if the PSA drops significantly? Would that not reveal we would be dealing with PC and not BPA???

[Tall_Allen]

Lupron shrinks the prostate too.

[Rocketman1960 in reply to Tall_Allen]

Guess it would be pretty hard to calibrate results into anything meaningful.

[Tall_Allen in reply to Rocketman1960]

Only a biopsy detects PCa.

[Rocketman1960 in reply to Tall_Allen]

Was just trying to think outside the box. If the PSA to zero and then tested psa over time and got a consistant doubling time would that not be a good indication of PCa?

[Tall_Allen in reply to Rocketman1960]

If you are talking about initial diagnosis, as I said, Lupron shrinks the prostate, so BPH would go to zero whether it's benign or cancer. 5aris are better at distinguishing them but still require a biopsy.

[timotur]

Dr Bahn told me fluctuating PSA is often prostatitis, versus steadily rising PSA being indicative of PCa. Lupron could indicate one is still hormone-sensitive.

[Rocketman1960]

Makes sense.

[Tommyj2]

Any bone or CT scans? If so presume the results were negative or you would be being medicated rather than writing….. with all the side effects of ADT I should think you would want to scan before inject.

[Rocketman1960 in reply to Tommyj2]

Hi Tommy, this isnt for me. Im 12 years in Advanced PC. Yes, scans have been done. negative all the way around. Just a bit of thinking outside the box.

[NEHOG]

Having been on Lupron for many years, I've not experienced any unbearable side effects. I do know that my oncologist would say that "It takes time to evaluate the effectiveness of any treatment" and by that she means at least 3-6 months minimum!

[MateoBeach]

No help with diagnosis. PSA would go down whether cancer or BPH. Better: get a multi-parametric MRI of the prostate for diagnosis and image guided biopsy if indicated. Lupron is a sledgehammer.

[Rocketman1960 in reply to MateoBeach]

Thank you. makes sense.