I’ve been on the Zytiga/Lupron/Prednisone cocktail for about 13 months now. In that time, my A1C has shot up to where now I have diabetes. Now I know this is a possible side effects of this therapy. My question is, when I’m supposed to come off Zytiga (in about a year) does the A1C drop as well? Any experiences are appreciated.
Thank you all.
No. I came off Zytiga beginning of May. No improvement in Blood glucose. .
Its the Lupron, well not the Lupron directly, its the lack of testosterone.
Same as you my A1C shot up after starting Lupron with Abi/Pred
I had similar situations. try to setup appointment with your primary care and primary care will adjust the dosage
It is not Zytiga. It is Prednisone
Thank you for the reply, did adjusting the Prednisone dosage fix the issue?
Nope, You may start diabetic medicine like metformin
It's the lack of Testosterone. As mentioned above, I stopped Zytiga and Prednisone, was no change.
It was the prednisone not the Zytiga itself that was impacting my blood glucose. Before I began using Zytiga in April 2021 my glucose levels were around 5.8 mmol/l which is in the normal range.
While on prednisone it rose steadily over the months, breaching the diabetic level of 7.0 mmol/l (126 mg/dL) in July 2021. Instead of taking metformin and drugs of the kind, I started taking a supplement named Berberine. That helped for a few months but eventually I reaching a peak of 8.3 mmol/l in March 2023. In May 2023 my treatment ended and I was put on ADT vacation though tapering off from prednisone went on until sometime in June 2023.
By October 2023, so four months after being off prednisone, I was back to a non-diabetic level of 5.9 mmol/l and in April 2024, I was at 4.8 mmol/l.
So the good news is that the problem is not permanent, unless you permanently remain on prednisone. As I mentioned, while on prednisone I found that supplements like Berberine to be of some help. And if you prefer pharmaceutical drugs, then Metformin can also be used.
Hope this helps!
You were put on ADT vacation. Sure it wasn't the primary ADT causing it??
Pretty much. I had been on adt, lupron initially, for five months before starting zytiga and prednisone without gaining weight. Prednisone keeps your cortisol elevated artificially which contributes to make you insulin resistant. It is a side effect of taking that particular drug.
Here is what AI says about it :
"Yes, prednisone can make you insulin resistant. Prednisone is a corticosteroid that can affect how your body processes insulin, leading to increased blood sugar levels. This can result in a condition known as steroid-induced diabetes, which is similar to type 2 diabetes.
Even at low doses, prednisone can contribute to insulin resistance by making the liver less sensitive to insulin and increasing adiposity (body fat). This means that the cells in your body may not respond as effectively to insulin, causing higher blood sugar levels. "
Hope this helps
I saw this thing coming as far as the effects of prednisone blood sugar, belly fat. With supervision of oncologist and endocrinologist we cut back the prednisone dosage over a month. I now take 1/2 tablet per day, been doing so for nearly 2 years. This dose reduction is not for everyone. As u may suffer effects from lack of cortisol. I run 102 on BS and 5.5 to 5.6 on A1C. Good luck. It’s a struggle to manage these meds. One example, venlafaxine for hot flashes cause my BS to spike 10 to 15 percent.
I stopped taking the big V as a result.
Thanks for the feedback, my primary wants to put me on Metformin for the diabetes, great, more pills
When I was in hospital last they couldn’t give certain drugs because they conflicted with gabapentin. So they canned the three gabas and I’m not suffering for the loss of it,
I hope you have had your bone density checked. ADT accelerates bone loss about 4x. Likewise, sarcopenia. Rx for the former is probably a bone density med like Prolia (approved for APCa patients) et al. Rx for the latter is the right kind of exercise in large quantities. There is much info on this site about both topics. PS exercise also helps with blood sugar issues... Good luck, from a fellow member of the Hydra club, which only offers hard-vs-harder choices.
I was on Zytiga 500 mg/day plus prednisone 5 mg/day for 6 months. No lupron. My glucose after 6 months was 90 mg/dL. My testosterone at the end of the medication was almost zero. - two months later it was 1474 ng/dL. I'm going to get that checked.
you have become insulin resistant. Google curcumin for insulin resistance. There is a reason many of us on adt take supplements. God bless.
Zytiga and Xtandi
Zytiga
Cassodex OR Zytiga????
Re-sensitizing Zytiga and Xtandi
